Übermensch
by Ashen Author
Summary: In which Usagi plays the lesser evil against the Dark Kingdom, proving herself ruthless, cunning, manipulative, and awesome. As Sailor Moon she will lead the fight against the Dark Kingdom and stop them from destroying the world...mostly because she wants to conquer it. To give you an idea: Usagi has read and memorized the Evil Overlord list, and also variants applying to heroes.
1. Chapter 1

I'm posting this in honor of Usagi's birthday this year. Updates will be spurious and un-often, but they will occur. Mostly it will be when I hit a dead zone in my other story(s).

The idea that started this was simple. I've seen stories with an evil Naruto, and evil Ichigo, and evil Shinji, and just about every other main character I read. Some are good, most are not. However, I cannot easily recall seeing evil!Usagi without completely butchering the story, so I decided to try my hand at it. Here it is.

To sum it up quickly, it will be mostly the same plot, until things go off the rails at least, with only one or two background changes. But because Usagi is evil (in so much as a middle-class teenager can be) she'll be more cunning and manipulative, including towards her fellow senshi. And a lot of the fun will be making her genre savvy and screwing with her anyways (I accept suggestions). Tell me what you think.

I don't own Sailor Moon. Nor do I own Peter's overlord list, Issendai's magical girl list, or anything else referenced here.

* * *

"Usagi, you're late!" Ikuko called. "Wake up now or you'll be late for school!" After three minutes of this and an assault from her little brother the blonde in question pulled herself out of bed and glared at her alarm clock.

"Mom, it's daylight savings!" Usagi shouted back. "It's not even seven! I still have an hour!"

"Daylight savings is next week! It's ten to eight!"

"Really?" The blonde blinked as she processed this. "Oh, crap." Usagi was instantly a whirlwind of movement, dressed and out the door running full pelt in under two minutes. She hadn't been late for a month since she bought herself a new alarm clock (which she had programmed to play the one thing so horrible that she _couldn't_ sleep through it—Barney songs) and falling back into bad habits was something she couldn't afford now that she was in high school.

Thankfully, Usagi was good enough to be recruited to the track team for her school, and would make it with two minutes to spare at her current pace. At least, she would have made it with two minutes to spare if she hadn't crashed into someone rounding the corner.

"Ow…Damn, lumphead, are you trying to give me a concussion?" Usagi looked up into the eyes of a guy. A hot guy. Unfortunately, the lumphead comment was a major turn-off. She swallowed the apology she'd been about to give.

"No, but it would probably help your attitude," she snapped. "I was going to apologize, but now I really _don't_ feel sorry."

"Go play in traffic," he drawled, and walked away.

"Go screw yourself!" she shrieked at his retreating back. He just made a talk-to-the-hand gesture and kept walking. Usagi snarled to herself and set about collecting her things. She definitely had a scraped knee. She heard a couple of kids yelling to each other a few meters away and turned to look. They were gathered around something, probably an animal or a smaller kid, and she vaguely considered leaving it.

But she was already late, and she was was also tired, cranky, sore, and upset. She looked at the kids and thought, _targets._

"Hey, brats!" she yelled storming over. They turned around and she pulled one into the noogie of a lifetime. "Picking on things smaller than you ain't so fun on the other end, huh?" They ran away. She turned to see what they were picking on. "A kitty-cat, huh."

The black cat was curled up and pawing at a band-aid on it's forehead. She blew out a breath, exasperated at herself, and picked it up by the scruff of its neck.

"Hey, there…girl," she said checking its sex. "No collar? Well, someone must have cared enough to put that on you. Or was it those kids' idea of a joke?" That cat mewled helplessly. "You know…" Usagi mused, "a lot of people say that doing evil doesn't feel good." She stuck one finger under the bandage and ripped it off viciously, prompting a yowl of agony from the cat, which she dropped back to the ground uncaringly. "Personally, though, I think that doing good feels evil." She grinned and began running to school again, and the cat just stared as she went.

_That was rather vicious. She doesn't seem the type,_ Luna thought,_ but I got such a familiar feeling from her. Have I found one of the senshi after all this time?_

* * *

"Usagi, I'm surprised," Ms. Haruna said to the blonde standing in the doorway. "You haven't been late for over a month now. What happened?"

"I thought it was daylight savings time and messed up my alarm," she admitted. A few of her classmates laughed, and Usagi's head snapped towards them. Rather than yell or glare, she raised an eyebrow and mockingly bowed. "Thank you, thank you, I'm here all week. All year in fact. And next year if I don't get my grades up." Everyone laughed at that and Ms. Haruna sighed.

"I'll go easy on you this once," the English teacher said, "but if it happens again you're back in detention."

"Thank you Ms. Haruna!" Usagi swiftly hugged her teacher and skipped to her desk. The rest of the lesson was relatively painless, as Usagi had been seriously applying herself in English lately, and ended when Ms. Haruna passed back everyone's tests from the previous week.

_76%!_ Usagi celebrated. It was more than 30% higher than what she'd been getting the previous month. Her study sessions with Umino and Takeshi were paying off, it seemed. _Even if they do ogle me a bit, it's worth it. And hey, if I get free tutoring in exchange for showing them a bit of skin, who am I to complain?_

* * *

Usagi plopped down on the roof and a circle of students quickly formed around her.

"Do you want some?" Daisuke asked, noticing her lack of a lunch box.

"Thanks," she purred, and scooted next to him. And if she left a smudge of lip gloss on his chopsticks, she pretended not to notice and he pretended not to care. After all, it wasn't like he wanted an indirect kiss from her. A few more bites later and she pecked him on the cheek, earning a blush.

"So, how was the test?" One by one everyone answered, ranging from Umino and Takeshi's 105% and 98% to Shinobu and Sado's 66% and 68%. The blonde dropped words of encouragement and congratulations where appropriate, until she got to Shinobu.

"I got up to a 76 with some tutoring form Takeshi and Umino," she told the shy girl. Shinobu meeped as Usagi slid next to her and slung an arm over her shoulder, pulling their cheeks side-to-side. "Maybe you should sit in on a few sessions with us, hmm?"

"Y-yeah," Umino stuttered out, seeing the two girls pressed so close together. Takeshi bit his lip and pretended to look away, but couldn't quite manage.

"R-r-really," Shinobu stuttered, a touch intimated by the thought of spending time not only with queen-of-the-class Usagi, but resident hottie Takeshi as well.

"Really," Usagi assured, but then put her finger to her lips in thought and shifted positions. If this happened to cause her skirt to hike up, well, the boys pretended not to notice. They didn't pretend very well, but they made the effort. "Actually, now that I think about it, maybe that isn't such a good idea."

"What! Why?" Umino yelped, trying not to drool. His eyes hadn't traveled above stomach height in several minutes, and he was trying not to drool at Usagi's expanse of thigh. If Naru hadn't known Usagi was teasing him on purpose, she'd have slapped Umino for such blatant perversion.

"You two already spend so much time spacing out on me that I don't think your brains would survive spending time with sweet little Shinobu, too," Usagi purred, rubbing their cheeks together affectionately. "Isn't that every guy's dream? Two girls?"

"I-I-I can tot-tally cont-trol myself-f," Umino objected.

"Y-yeah, what kind of horn-dog do you take me for," Takeshi objected.

"Really?" Usagi asked smugly. "Cover their eyes." Naru clapped her hands over Umino's glasses while Sayuri did the same to Takeshi. "What color are my panties?"

"I wasn't looking at your polka dots," Umino claimed. "I mean your panties!"

"Neither was I! My eyes stayed on your face," Takeshi maintained.

"Really, Takeshi? What color is my eye shadow?" Usagi asked. There was a long pause as Takeshi got redder and redder. Several people started snickering that the popular sports-jock had been caught. Takeshi squirmed, trying to get a glimpse of her face, but Sayuri kept his eyes covered.

"Blue!" he blurted out, unwilling to take the embarrassment any longer.

"Nope."

"Right, sorry, it was the sparkly silver kind you like," he guessed trying to salvage the situation. Usagi motioned for the girls to uncover their eyes.

"I'm not wearing any," the blonde deadpanned, having not had time to do make-up that morning. She turned her head, going nose-to-nose with a blushing Shinobu. "Boys, right? Really, if we didn't need them for babies, I'd wonder why we bother. Don't you agree," she asked the shy girl, and Shinobu grew redder and redder. Several boys leaned forward in anticipation.

The fact that Usagi was both bi and liberally affectionate was well known among her classmates. Most the boys hoped for a bit of yuri, and even one or two girls felt a pang of jealousy. None would admit it—or at least, none would admit it very proudly—but several of them _knew_ that Usagi was a very good kisser, and she had made a few people ask themselves some uncomfortable questions after an 'encounter' or two.

"Sometimes I just…" Usagi trailed off softly and Shinobu found herself leaning forward slightly. The blonde was simply intoxicating, and- "Are those sakura mocha?"

Everyone blinked as Usagi did an about-face, nose twitching at the scent of sweets. A few of the boys groaned in disappointment, only to wince as their female classmates socked them.

"I—yes," Toharu stammered out, surprised by the change in topic.

"Could I pleasepleaseplease have one or two?" Usagi begged eagerly, applying her soulful puppy-dog eyes at full power.

"Go ahead," Toharu offered and Usagi grabbed two, stuffing one in her mouth.

"Fanx, vese ah derishous!" Everyone sweat-dropped at Usagi's mood swing. Naru was the only one who knew her well enough to tell that the blonde was giving everyone mood-whiplash on purpose. It was her idea of a hobby.

"So Usagi," the redhead began, simultaneously offering a few tidbits from her own bento to the ravenous blonde, "what made you so late for school this morning? Did you really mess up your alarm clock?"

The blonde paused in her chewing, swallowed, and nodded. "Yup, and no one bothered to get me up until it was too late," she added, put out. "Even then I would have made it if I hadn't slammed into this guy on the way. What an asshole."

"Really? You ran someone over? Or did the guy trip you?"

"I ran him over, but he way over-reacted. I apologized and he—" Usagi stopped, blinked, and face-palmed.

"What's wrong?"

"I just realized I had a meet cute," the blonde groaned. Shinobu and Ichiro, both members of the manga club with Usagi, were the only ones to get the reference.

"What, like a crash into hello?" Ichiro asked to clarify.

"Bingo."

"This is one of your manga things, right?" Naru asked.

"Yeah, it's pretty common. You introduce a new character by having someone run into them. I bet I'll be seeing a lot of him for a while."

"You do realize that real life doesn't work like that, right," Naru teased, grinning.

"I'll bet you 1,000 yen that I see him again before the day's over tomorrow," Usagi countered.

"Deal," Naru agreed, and they shook on it.

"Good, I look forward to winning," Usagi purred, leaning back. Her stomach growled and she laughed nervously. "Heh, anyone have some tidbits to give to poor, starving Usagi?" A few offers later and she was happily munching. One of her classmates, Chiyo, brought up an interesting question.

"I heard that there was another jewelry robbed in the area. It wasn't yours, Naru, was it?"

"No," the redhead answered, shaking her head. "The 'rose robber' hasn't struck us yet."

"Rose robber? Is that what they're calling him?"

"Yes," Umino announced, eager to display his garbage-brain status. "The mysterious person, or possibly group of people, has been dubbed the 'Rose Robber' due to his or her habit of leaving a rose as a calling card at the scene. What's more the police are not only baffled by his identity and methods, but his motives as well. Reportedly he's only stolen a handful of pieces from any of the stores, all of which have been returned with another rose a day or two later."

"Yeah," Naru agreed. "He's got everyone nervous, but no one's really worried. I heard my mom say that it's probably a guy trying to drum up business for a security company or something. That's the only reason I can think of why he would do that."

"I would totally do it if I thought I could," Sayuri gushed. "Just the thought of being surrounded by all those beautiful gemstones, it makes me shiver."

"If you're that into it, just drop by the store after school," Naru said drily. "My mom started a big sale yesterday, and some of the stuff is even in our price range."

"Really?" Usagi asked, and grinned. "Well, I know where I'm going after track today." The lunch bell cut off all other conversation.

* * *

"Assemble." The voice rang with power and echoed around the empty cavern. A moment later four figures teleported in, called from their various duties to report. "Zoicite, how fare your operations?"

"Badly, your majesty. Most of my troops were slaughtered by Sailor V, and it is only with the loan of youma from Lord Kunzite that I can continue my operations without falling into the red. Soon I may fall below quota, regardless. The blonde b**** has many of our youma terrified; it is difficult to believe that she is a mere senshi."

"If your energy collection is not going well, how fares your recruitment, then?"

"Alas, my queen, with Danubrite-with Adonis's death I have been unable to find any further reincarnated warriors. I must wonder if it was mere chance or an accident that caused his rebirth, as no other member of the court has yet appeared."

"Your search for the Silver Crystal, then, Zoicite?"

"That goes much better, my queen. We do not yet have any leads but we are turning through large numbers of gems in search of it. If nothing else, we will be able to soon establish that it is not in Europe, and focus our efforts elsewhere for better results." Zoicite finished his report and bowed, awaiting Beryl's judgement. She sighed.

"It is not good, Zoicite, and I am not happy. However, I take into consideration the fact that you single-handedly kept Sailor V away from most of our other activities for several months, allowing your fellows to succeed at cost to yourself, so I shall excuse you. Continue your works, and have better news for me soon. Kunzite," she continued as Zoicite bowed and stepped back, "how goes your energy gathering?"

"It goes, my queen. The violence in Africa and the Middle East serve as excellent cover for our attacks, and Sailor V has not yet paid us a visit. Sometimes this works against, as we have lost forces to others' attacks on occasion, but overall we have a slow but steady current of energy to give to our great leader."

"Excellent," she purred. "And your search for the Silver Crystal?"

"My forces have seized control of several diamond smuggling rings, and mines, but rather than search for it ourselves we are forwarding the gems to Zoicite's forces, who look with greater thoroughness and efficiency." He gestured to the European Operations leader, who bowed again silently.

"I have no objection to this, as long as there is a search," Beryl told them. "Nephrite, what have the stars told you?"

"Alas, my queen, the stars have been silent on this subject. What's more, I have lately been suffering Zoicite's problems, with Sailor V now operating in North America. She has steadily been interrupting over thirty percent of my operations, and her successes are growing. I have not had time to do more than a cursory search for the Silver Crystal. Perhaps, when Zoicite is finished in Europe, he could spare me a few searchers?"

Zoicite laughed lightly as Queen Beryl's eyes turned back to him. "In a week or two I would be happy to help him, my queen. Nephrite, just keep a list of places to look, and I'll go over it when I have the chance."

"Given that you are keeping Sailor V busy, this is acceptable for now," Beryl told them. "Jadeite, what of your operations?" The blond bowed.

"My queen, it was originally my forces who discovered and fought Sailor V, and after that devastating first month before she began appearing in Europe, I had pulled most of my forces out of Japan, instead taking advantage of the high population density to operate in China and India."

"I remember this, Jadeite. Moreover, you have been providing me with the most energy over any of your fellows, due to the scope of your operations. What of it?"

"My queen, earlier Nephrite predicted several locations where the Silver crystal might appear, including London and Tokyo. With Sailor V active in America, I have finally returned my troops to Japan to begin our search for the Silver Crystal."

"What have you found?"

"At the moment I only have one of my operatives, the insidious Morga, active to scout the area. She infiltrated a store where they sell jewels and crystals on the off-chance that we would find a lead. No luck as yet, but she asked for and received permission to begin a draining operation using false gems, so I shall soon have another delivery of energy for you. I have several other operations ready for the near future, as well, so we soon shall have a steady flow of energy for our great ruler."

"Excellent, Jadeite, I am well pleased," Beryl announced, shifting in her throne. "Continue your work, all of you, and do not disappoint."

"Yes, your majesty," the four chorused in unison, and teleported away.

* * *

"Three…Two…One…Start!"

The four girls exploded into motion, Usagi quickly taking the lead as they pelted around the track. If this was a sprint then she would definitely be in the lead, but…

"Tsukino! Slow down! This is supposed to be an endurance run!" The four were supposed to do ten laps around the track, but at this rate most people would be exhausted by three, maybe five laps.

"I'm fine!" the blonde called back as she passed by the coach.

"She really is," Naru commented from the bleachers. The coach hadn't seen it yet, since this was still early in Usagi's first year of high school, but Naru had seen the blonde on the track at their old school. Usagi wasn't particularly strong, graceful, or dexterous, but she had two good qualities when it came to sports.

One, she was fast. _Wickedly_ fast. Naru was fairly certain that her friend could outrun a motorcycle in a short enough distance. She had definitely seen Usagi outrun bicyclists in the past as well.

Two, the blonde had absolutely _insane_ stamina. Over the past summer Usagi had asked Naru to help her find her limits, so that she'd know not to go overboard. Usagi had run thirty-eight laps at her current speed before passing out, with only the occasional pause to grab a water bottle or swallow an ice cube.

Of course, such stamina came with a downside. Once Usagi had hit her limit, she completely crashed. The blonde had slept through the rest of that afternoon, that night, and woken up at noon the next day, at which point she had been ravenous. Naru hadn't been there to see it herself, but Usagi claims she had eaten almost thirty pounds of food, according to her mother.

It was really rather…frightening. Sometimes Naru found herself wondering if her best friend was only partly human. Then Usagi would do something like squee over a manga or drag them both clothes shopping, and Naru'd decide that it didn't matter either way.

"Tsukino, are you okay?" the coach yelled. Naru focused back on the track. Usagi's clumsiness had struck again, and the blonde had tripped over her own two feet. In spite of this, she had a big enough lead that the other two hadn't passed her yet, but they were closing in.

"Pick yourself up and beat their butts, bunny!" Naru yelled to encourage her friend. The blonde stood up, shaking her head to clear away the birdies, just as the front-runner passed her. Usagi immediately sprung into motion, holding her own with the next up.

Half a lap later she had pulled even with the front-runner, who had broken from her stamina-conserving jog into a sprint in an attempt to keep her lead. She couldn't keep it up, and another half-lap later Usagi had pulled back into first.

"Seven minutes, ten seconds," the coach clocked as she finished the final lap. Usagi kept jogging towards the stands, flashing a victory sign to Naru.

"Your store still open?" she asked the redhead.

"It should be," Naru agreed, standing. A few others peeled off to follow them now that practice was over.

"Aren't you going to change?" Sayuri asked Usagi.

"Do I need to? I think I barely worked up a sweat," Usagi answered.

"Point. Are you even human?" Toharu asked quietly, but with a smile.

"I hope so," Usagi said. "Otherwise my mom needs to answer some questions." _Still…It would be cool if was different. More than I already am, at any rate. There would be so many opportunities, even if it was just a little advantage over everyone else. You can do a lot with a little._ Usagi sighed.

The Osa-P came into view after a few minutes, and it was packed.

"Oh wow, that ruby is _gorgeous,_" Usagi said wistfully. "And those _pearls._"

"That's a special piece—a pigeon's blood ruby. It's worth, like, a million yen or something," Naru told her. "And obviously it isn't on sale. I think this is just to drum up business for regular pieces, the specials are all full price."

"Not all of them," Naru's mother announced cheerfully, coming out of no-where. "We just got a new shipment cheap, and there're a lot of things on sale, and I'll give you girls a bigger discount so you can find something you like." The girls quickly scattered into the throng, searching, pushing, and shoving their way through the older women. Usagi in particular had a pair of vicious elbows, and emerged victorious a few minutes later.

"I've had my eye on these forever!" She deposited the pair of luminescent pearl earrings set in silver into Mrs. Osaka's hands. "How much are they?"

"Oh…one of the old set," Mrs. Osaka said weakly. "Wouldn't you like something a bit newer? These aren't on sale, I'm afraid. How about these?" _Take these glass gems infused with dark energy, and give your life force to the Dark Kingdom. I, Morga, servant of General Jadeite, command it!_

"Oh, rubies are my favorite! Even more than pearls! How much are they?" Usagi asked eagerly. The red drops glittered invitingly. At the incredibly small (small for jewelry, but it was still almost two months of allowance) sum Mrs. Osaka quoted, Usagi quickly shelled out her cash, almost emptying her purse, and departed the store with great glee.

"These are so pretty," she purred, putting them in her ears and throwing the box into the trashcan behind her. "Aren't you, my preciousss?"

"What is it with you and hitting my head, meatballs?" asked an annoyingly familiar voice behind her. Usagi turned around to find herself looking at the young man from that morning, now dressed in a tuxedo. He was holding the box she had tossed over her shoulder and rubbing his forehead. Usagi promptly ignored him, and turned back to the jewelry store.

"Hey Naru!" She managed to make herself heard over the throng and her friend made a 'listening' gesture through the glass. "You owe me 1,000 yen," she called, pointing to the guy in the tux, and Naru made a hopeless 'okay, later,' gesture. Usagi nodded in acceptance and flounced off, paying no attention to the man slated to become a recurring character in her life's story. In turn, he just watched her walk away, followed by a black cat that and turned back to the store.

_There's definitely magic here,_ he thought to himself. _If I'm lucky, it may very well be the Silver Crystal._

* * *

"Oh, that's just trite," Usagi muttered to herself, reading fanfiction on her computer that evening. "Hinata can be a badass, but it's stupid for her to go like that without any in between points. It completely destroys the character!" She began typing up a scathing review of the Naruto fanfiction she'd thought looked so promising, and hit enter. She sat back and began scrolling through her account, but none of her favorites had been updated recently.

"Oh well, I guess I can't put it off any longer," she said to herself, and began typing. The next chapter of her Evangelion story, under the pen name Tsukiyomi, wasn't going to write itself.

"Not who I'd expected," said an unfamiliar voice from behind her. Usagi spun around instantly, grabbing the pair of scissors on her desk and her free hand inching toward the knife hidden under her pillow. Then she got a good look at the intruder. It was the black cat from that morning, with a crescent moon spot on her forehead.

"The hell?"

"None the less," the cat continued in a female voice, "I believe you are the one I've spent so long looking for, Usagi Tsukino."

"…Hold on a sec," Usagi deadpanned, and opened a drawer in her desk. Not taking her eyes off the cat, but not paying much attention to what it was saying, she pulled a package of razor blades, disinfectant, gauze, and adhesive bandages out of the drawer.

"What are you doing?" the cat asked. With the calm air of practice Usagi drew a single red line across the back of her left hand, and hissed.

"Okay, I'm not dreaming," she said, and began quickly cleaning and binding her cut. "There really is a talking cat in the room. Lay it on me."

"I…yes. My name is Luna, and I have been searching for you for a very long time."

"Prophecy?" Usagi guessed.

"Something like that, yes. As you may be aware, there are things in this world that have been happening that are beyond the police's ability to handle. Dark forces are moving in the world."

"And I've been chosen to combat them, right?"

"Yes, exactly," Luna said, somewhat surprised. _She certainly seems eager. Maybe I misjudged her._

Of course, Usagi was thinking something very different. _Wonderful. Apparently I'm going to have to put my life on the line fighting monsters. First chance I get, scout out the other side and see what it's like. If Luna asks, I can tell her I'm plotting to infiltrate and destroy them from within. It might even be true, depending._

"Look, I'm going to need a little more information than that. First off," Usagi began, only to pause. _Wait. Hell! Isn't there some genre rule that heroes only get their powers in times of need? I'm going to be attacked any second now!_ "Scratch that, just do what you do and tell me how I make the magic work!" she yelped, panicking.

"This," Luna said, flipping into the air. A brooch with four gems and a crescent moon symbol fell onto her bed, and Usagi immediately grabbed it, feeling it warm in her hands. "This is your transformation amulet. You use it to become a sailor senshi by calling your activation phrase."

"What's the phrase?" Usagi snapped. _Naruto and Mizuki; Ichigo and the hollow; Luffy and his haki; Shinji and Sachiel; Shiro and Saber. The first stuff always happens right at the worst possible time. Why did I have to end up on the heroic side?_

"You become a sailor-suited guardian of love and justice with the words: Moon Power: Make-up!"

"Moon Power: Make-Up!" _Sailor-suited? Like the school uniform? I really hope I can change the outfit._

Instantly a shroud of light wrapped around Usagi like a cocoon. Her clothes vanished as she hung there, and streamers of brighter light wrapped around her, forming knee-high boots, elbow-length gloves, and the eponymous sailor suit, including a skirt that was definitely not appropriate for school.

"I have got to make that faster," she grumbled, falling back into a ready stance.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm waiting to get attacked. Isn't that always how these things start out?"

"I did notice an operation going on in the area, but not here. The jewelry store you were at earlier—"

"Naru!" Usagi yelled, and bolted out the window and across the rooftops toward the Osa-P. _Hell's bells! I won't let her be a death by origin story statistic! Come on, universe. Cut me a little slack here!_ She dropped to the ground and literally smashed through the door to find the store full of unconscious bodies.

The only exception was a twisted purple figure, which was holding a struggling Naru pinned to the wall by her neck. It turned its head a full 180 at the sound, but Usagi threw herself at it without hesitation. She kicked the creature into the far wall, feeling something break beneath her feet and paused only for a second to check that the redhead was still breathing. Naru's neck was bruised badly, but she was alive and conscious enough to whimper.

_She's entering shock, or she's possessed,_ Usagi thought to herself. She put Naru out of harm's way on the assumption it was the second, but kept her in the corner of her eye.

"You," the twisted woman began, only for Usagi to dart forward and deck her a second time, forcing her neck into another owl-like twist. The monster hit the ground, only to shoot back into the air like a ghost. "Rise up my minions!" it called, and the figures on the floor began to stir.

_Of course she can fly, _Usagi thought to herself. _Great, she's out of my range and everyone except Naru is brainwashed, _Usagi noted as the people all got to their feet and stumbled towards her like zombies.

"Sailor Moon!" called Luna, running through the broken door and into the store. "Those people are possessed and under the youma's thrall! You need to destroy it to free them!"

"I guessed," Usagi deadpanned. One of the puppets stumbled into arm's reach and she darted forward and buried a fist in their stomach. The person folded like cardboard and went flying back, but now the rest were getting too close for comfort.

"Seize her!" the youma commanded, and they stretched out their arms to do so. "Rip her to shreds and devour the pieces!"

Usagi grabbed one pair of outstretched arms, pivoted, and swung the poor meat-puppet around like a flail. The man's feet and legs hit his fellow zombie's head painfully fast. The other bodies hit the ground hard, and Usagi swung around once more and threw him into a pile-up that wasn't in range yet.

"What are you doing!" Luna shrieked. "Those are innocent people!"

"Don't yell at me for saving their lives," Moon snapped, "tell me how to kill that thing!"

"The Dark Kingdom shall never die!" it screamed, hanging in the air like a spider on a web. "I am Morga, and I will—argh!" Out of nowhere a rose had flown across the room and buried itself in her chest. It didn't appear to be a lethal wound, but it apparently hurt like hell.

"This is not what I was expecting to find tonight," began a man in a tuxedo and mask from the far side of the room as Morga dropped to the floor, "but never mind. Monster, I am Tuxedo Kamen, and—"

Usagi cut him off as Morga came back within her range by exploding across the room and smashing her face in with a right hook. The youma went tumbling back and hit the wall, only for Usagi to jump and kick her through the wall into the back room.

"Sailor Moon, brute force won't work against an enemy like this! You need to use magic!"

"Stop whining and tell me _how_," the blonde countered, jumping back as the youma stumbled back to its feet. It definitely didn't look very healthy at the moment, even for a soul-sucking monster.

"Grab your tiara and call Moon Tiara Magic!" Luna called desperately, hoping she was remembering correctly. She knew that one of the senshi had had a spell like that—at least, she'd seen _someone_ do it at some point. The fact that the senshi couldn't remember her own spells might be a problem.

Usagi plucked the circlet off of her head. "Moon Tiara Magic!" The metal transformed into a glowing disk of light. "Cutesy," the blonde commented, as the meat-puppets began to get back up. Morga definitely looked like she wanted to run, but had nowhere to go.

"I—" the youma began, only for Usagi to dart forward and shove the tiara between her eyes.

"You were supposed to throw it" Luna said weakly, as the youma collapsed into dusk and disintegrated.

"It worked, didn't it?" Usagi asked, turning around and walking towards the door. She stopped a few times to move people out of the way, or clear away some broken glass, or pick up something. Then they both heard the faint sound of sirens in the distance. "We should leave, huh?"

"Yes, let's," Luna said. "The world is not yet ready for the truth about what hides in the darkness." The two of them disappeared into the night. And if Naru's store was discovered to be missing a pair of pearl earrings set in silver when they did inventory, they just wrote it off as lost in the chaos.

* * *

"Now that _that_ is out of the way," Usagi said once she and Luna had slipped back through the window into her room, and Luna yelped as Usagi hoisted her up by the scruff of her neck, "I believe that you owe me some _answers._" Luna whimpered, remembering not only what the blonde had done earlier that day among her friends, but what she had done to the youma earlier—completely manhandling it with ridiculous ease.

"What do you want to know?" she asked weakly. _Good lord, she's quite the little sociopath. I almost feel sorry about siccing her on the Dark Kingdom. Almost._

"What's a youma, where do they come from, what do they want, and what's a senshi?" Usagi rattled off.  
"After that I'll see where things go from there. Just let me…" she slipped into her desk chair and pulled up a web browser and blank document.

"What are you doing?"

"Making a list," Usagi told her. "Now talk."

"Ahem. Yes, well, to begin with I need to tell you the story of the Silver Millennium."

"Ancient magical kingdom?"

"Yes, how did you know?"

"What else was it going to be? I mean, they used magical girls as soldiers, so it was either that or an alternate dimension thingy. Or aliens, I guess. Lay it on me."

"Very well, then. The Silver Millennium was a kingdom that existed thousands of years ago, but not on Earth. It was centered on the moon, and had spread out to all the other planets of the solar system."

"Even Earth?"

"Earth was the one planet that had not joined the Millennium, but plans were being made to join when the Silver Millennium fell. Magic was much more prominent then than it is now, and central to the Silver Millennium was the Silver Crystal, or Ginzuisho—a powerful magical artifact held and used by Queen Serenity of the moon. A mortal sorceress named Beryl made a pact with a demon, and together the two of them raised an army of evil-hearted people whom they gave transformed into youma and used to conquer the Silver Millennium."

"Okay. So that thing used to be a person…what were the senshi?"

"The senshi," Luna continued, "were the champions of the realm. In fact, the existence of senshi has religious connection back to Cosmos herself."

"A goddess?" Usagi asked.

"Very close. Sailor Cosmos was the first of the Sailor Senshi, and the strongest." Usagi snorted. "What?" Luna asked, confused by her reaction, and a little offended by the fact that the blonder didn't understand how incredible Cosmos had been.

"I just think it's sort of sad whenever people say, 'the first and the best,'" the blonde answered. "The first time you write a paper, it's a rough draft and it sucks. The first time you sing a song you're off tune and you stumble on the lyrics. The first time you run a race you fall flat on your face and lose. _And then you get better._ Saying that the first was the best means that ever since then they've only gotten _worse._ I can't really respect that."

"I suppose I see your point," Luna admitted, "but things aren't so cut and dry. Sailor Cosmos was the greatest because of her raw power. She was connected to and drew her power from the Galaxy Cauldron and all the stars within it. All the senshi since then have only been connected to individual stars or planets. Or in your case, a moon. There may also be a few asteroids and comets, somewhere. No comparison."

"Alright, I guess I can see that. Go on."

"Cosmos brought an age of peace and light to the galaxy, forcing the darkness to flee, but even she was not immortal. Or, as some people say, she could have been immortal, but chose mortality rather than ruling as a goddess over the galaxy forever. She was very selfless." Usagi very carefully didn't comment. "Before her death, she did…something. She wove the existence of senshi into the fabric of the universe to serve as champions of the future. Each of them bound to a celestial body from which they drew their power."

"And I'm bound to the moon?"

"As your name implies. There were senshi in the Silver Millennium acting as its champions. In fact, senshi from all across the galaxy would come to the court to learn to use their powers."

"Why?"

"Because the royal family of the moon were direct, blood descendants of Cosmos herself, and her power flowed in their veins. The Ginzuisho was rumored to have been given to them by their progenitor so that they could serve her will after she was gone. It was the center of learning about senshi, until Beryl attacked."

"What happened with the attack? How did she win, anyways?"

"Beryl attacked us by surprise, at a time when we were weaker than usual."

"How weak?"

"Most people had lowered their guard to celebrate the princess's coming of age and engagement, and several of the senshi were relatively new to their positions."

"And she took advantage. I saw that coming a mile away."

"When almost everyone was dead and the queen realized the war was lost, she used the Silver Crystal. At the cost of her own life, she sealed away the Dark Kingdom for several thousand years and sent the souls and powers of the sailor senshi forward to reincarnate so that they could stop the darkness once and for all. And you, Usagi Tsukino, are one of these reincarnated warriors upon whose shoulders the fate of the world rests."

The blonde nodded dumbly. "Alright, I get it. Geez. Okay, what can a senshi _do?_ What powers do I get from this gig?"

"More than I can easily remember," Luna admitted, "but there are several that are particularly important. First, obviously, is the magic you used to kill the youma. You'll get more and more powerful spells as your power grows, often centered around an elemental theme. I'm not sure from yours what your element is…perhaps light, or the ability to channel raw energy through objects. Also, enhanced physical abilities, such as when you leapt across the roofs earlier, or kicked that youma through the wall."

"Any other stuff?" Usagi asked, still typing on the computer.

"Enhanced healing. Disguise magic to protect your identity. Some level of extrasensory perception. It depends on the senshi."

_So basically, I'm being left a loophole for new powers as the plot demands,_ Usagi thought to herself.

"First thing's first, then. Can't I have a more appropriate outfit or something? I'm supposed to be a _warrior_. Or a faster transformation? And do I really need a brooch to transform?"

"Is your amulet a problem?" Luna asked.

"_Hell_ yes! Peter's rule number five: 'the artifact which is the source of my power will not be kept on the Mountain of Despair beyond the River of Fire guarded by the Dragons of Eternity. It will be in my safe-deposit box. The same applies to the object which is my one weakness'. Issendai's rule twenty-five: 'I will not allow the center of my powers, and thus the fate of whatever I am protecting, to depend on a _ge__m, stone, or any object smaller than a grapefrui_t, which could be easily stolen, lost, or accidentally flushed down the toilet'. In short, _don't_ leave the source of your power around where anyone can find it, like _pinned to your blouse_!"

"Wait…whose rules?" Luna asked, bemused.

"It's a thing on the internet," Usagi answered shortly. "Do I have to have this thing on me at all times, or can I leave it in my safety deposit box and still transform?"

"You need it with you," Luna replied. "I know it seems like a vulnerability, but Cosmos made it that way so that a senshi who went bad could be stopped by stealing their transformation talisman. And you have it easy. Most amulets I've seen are wands or pens or some form. At least you can pin yours to your clothes."

"But I have to have it on me," Usagi clarified wearily.

"Yes, you do. A high-level senshi, such as a Crystal- or Sacred-class senshi might find the amulet unnecessary, but it will be years before you reach that level."

"If most of them are in a different shape, that means these can change shape, right? Can't you make this something easier to keep track of?" Usagi asked hopefully. Luna squirmed uncomfortably.

"…Theoretically, yes," the cat admitted, "but I don't remember how. My memories were rather swiss-cheesed when I was reincarnated." Usagi groaned.

"Alright, I guess I'm not getting any slack on this. Now what did you mean by sacred and crystal class?"

"There are several power levels senshi can achieve, each one unlocking more spells and abilities. At the moment you are only at the basic level, but as you grow you'll become more powerful."

"And the levels are…?"

"Basic, where you are. Prism, planet, crisis, crystal, sacred, star, eternal. As you grow you'll gain the ability to do more and more, though you probably will never achieve Eternal status. there's only been one or two of them since Cosmos. Also, if you choose to pass your powers on to a successor, they'll begin as 'lesser' senshi."

"Is there any way to speed up how fast I power up?" Usagi asked intently, pausing to turn away from the computer. "I think I'll need all the help I can get if it's just me against the Dark Kingdom."

"Just using your powers is all," Luna explained. "That being said, you won't be alone. I hopefully will find and awaken the other reincarnated senshi as well."

"Can I help? Who should we look out for?"

"Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter. They should all be at about your age, and female, but beyond that I don't know."

"I'll keep a lookout for them," Usagi promised, still typing away. "No Earth? No Saturn or Uranus?"

"Earth never had a senshi," Luna responded, "and I can't remember a Saturn or Uranus. If they existed, I didn't know them."

"Wonderful," Usagi said drily. "I still have some issues. Is there any way I can transform faster?"

"Faster? Your transformation only took a second or two."

"Really? It felt a lot longer," Usagi mused. _I'll have to clock it later._ "The uniform, then. Can't I get something more protective? Like with a helmet or something?"

"Higher level senshi can alter their uniform a little, but overall the outfit is what you're stuck with. You shouldn't need anything else, though. It provides a lot of protection."

"Protection? It's a sailor fuku! A cutesy school uniform!"

"A sailor fuku made of knife-,bullet-, and magic-proof material and enchanted to act as magical armor," Luna said drily. Usagi sighed in defeat and repeated a rule from the list to herself.

_'I will resist the urge to dropkick the obscenely cute and fuzzy whatsit which follows my party around. There's no telling what powers it has.' Speaking of that, though…_

"Luna, what magical powers do you have? Will you be able to help me?"

"I'm not as powerful as I once was," Luna said non-committally, with just a touch of embarassment. "My main purpose is to act as an advisor and find the other senshi, as well as sniff out Dark Kingdom activities. You're mostly on your own for the fighting." The black cat with the crescent moon mark sounded rather apologetic about it.

"I'll live with it, or die trying," Usagi stated flatly, closing out of her windows and shutting the computer off. She still had things she wanted to know, but also knew that it was late, and important things would slip her mind if she kept going, so she decided to turn in.

_I just have to hope I have plot armor, _Usagi thought to herself, turning in.

* * *

Usagi's list for living as a magical girl: (typed while talking to Luna)

*Changing my hair might be a giveaway that _something_ is going on (and I don't want to) so I'll wait until something grabs it before I cut it, but will be willing to do so at any time.

*That guy in Tux will either be a love-interest or will betray me. Or both. Maintain healthy levels of skepticism and self-sufficiency.

*Hope like hell that the universe plays things straight instead of deconstructing, or else I'm f***ed.

*Since magic is real, read up on all myths and legends in case I come across a vampire or zombie. Similarly, find out if there is a masquerade I need to be let in on.

*Assume that other people somewhere will have some skills with magic, and try to learn it. It can only help.

*Start carrying mace, a knife, and a towel (and if possible a gun) at all times.

*Find some way to conceal my stupid brooch. (Pin it on the inside of my blouse? Hide it in my hair?)

*Test out how well my fuku actually protects me. Try to work in a helmet if unsatisfied. Also, make sure that it actually protects my identity.

*Scout out the other side: their methods, are they recruiting, how powerful are they, how many, etc.

_*Nine times in ten_ a transfer student will probably be a new senshi. Befriend them _as soon as possible_, and be ready to [convert or] kill them if they turn out to be a youma.

*Once I find the others, try to fade in the background and be their sidekick so that no one will pay any attention to me.

*Resist the urge to dropkick Luna. It's not her fault that the plot makes her be stupidly vague and unhelpful, and she might be powerful enough to waste me.

*It was implied that aliens exist on other planets. Research ASAP.

*Take the monster out as quickly and quietly as possible—from behind preferably. Good publicity from saving people is good, but only when I don't risk being zerg rushed, ambushed, assassinated, or captured. I'll end up getting credit for it anyways, the way these things go.

*Find out whether I'll be a senshi for the rest of my life or not and what that entails. Focus on schoolwork and life-skills accordingly.

*Learn if I can fly or teleport.

*Kill every enemy I can so that they don't take back information on me or become annoying recurring villains or worse—rivals.

*Listen to what old people tell me, especially about monsters. In fact, wring every piece of information I can out of them, using all of my young-and-cute wiles.

*Carry salt and other weapons in case of tentacles. Remember that some things are better left to the JSDF.

*Travelers from the future, especially annoying kids, are likely to be _my_ kids. Pump them for any and all helpful hints using maternal force.

*Carefully ask parents about family history. Am I 100% human? Are there any curses we might be susceptible to?

*Ask Luna about unpleasant secrets involved in being a senshi. Does it shorten people's life spans or risk them turning into monsters?

*If I end up against a pathetic boss, keep them as long as possible so that no one worse takes their place.

*Hit on villains/monsters that appear to be male. Or female, for that matter, it's not like I care, and either way it'll freak them out. After all, I'm a soldier for justice and _love_.

*Assume until proven otherwise that the Dark Kingdom can find and read the Overlord List, if they have not already!

* * *

So ends the first chapter of Übermensch. I'd like to credit Sage of the Toads for inspiring this story with a running gag in his story Beautiful Destroyer Sailor Moon. I won't say what the gag was, but it shows up in the first chapter and again when Usagi meets Makoto.

Tell me if you liked it, or it sucks.


	2. Chapter 2

Yes, this is the first story to get updated, mainly because it's had the shortest chapter to write. I'd like to thank the four people who reviewed for my first chapter. I hope that Chap 2 matches the apparently high stander it laid.

I don't own Sailor Moon, or anything else mentioned in this chapter. Especially not the Ace of Hearts list about Magical Girls.

* * *

"How is this possible? Morga should never have been destroyed by mere humans," Jadeite said to himself, teleporting away from the scene of his subordinate's defeat. After Morga had reported that she hadn't found any signs of magical crystals in the store, she'd asked for permission to launch an energy operation. He'd given it, applauding her dedication, and returned to the base to organize his other troops.

And he'd returned to find this…

Jadeite reappeared in the group of caves he had commandeered as his personal base. "Murid, Flau, Balm," he called, and the three youma he named assembled in front of him. "Morga is dead," he said without preamble.

"How is that possible?" Murid asked.

"Pathetic," Flau snarled, only for the other two youma to snarl at her. Flau was primarily a combat-specialist, and had little respect for youma who weren't, but she was also the lowest ranked of the three.

"General Jadeite, what happened?" Murid asked again.

"I am uncertain," he replied tersely. "There was a police presence, so I could not approach too closely. However, whoever it was that killed her must have acted quickly and with overwhelming force. It is also quite possible that they had detected her presence before and waited until I was absent to act. We may be facing a well-trained, well-informed force, or they may just have gotten lucky."

"That sounds alarmingly like Sailor V," Balm noted, and the other two looked over their shoulders. After all, there was a saying about speaking of the devil...

"I would like to offer my services to hunt them down," Flau said, shaking off the momentary flash of anxiety with anger. "They will find me a far harder foe than Morga."

"But a far stupider one, if you wish to face her head on," Balm objected. Flau lunged towards her, only for Jadeite to blast them both.

"Enough squabbling. Balm, we still believe V to be in America, messing with Nephrite, and her battles have tended to be flashier than this. Murid, Morga was your highest lieutenant, yes?"

"Yes General Jadeite," Murid said, bowing. "I will accept full responsibility for her death and failure, if you wish."

"No, that won't be necessary," Jadeite told her. "We are not yet in danger of falling below quota. Rather, I have called you three here to give assignments."

"Yes, sir," all three chorused.

"Murid, you are still assigned to the long-term operation in Dreamland we discussed. In the meanwhile I want you to also take over day-to-day operations among the troops, even if it means cutting back on your energy collected."

"Yes, sir," Murid responded. Flau snorted.

"General, I could manage the troops and collect energy without issue," the fighter claimed. "Just give me the chance to prove my worth and—" Flau trailed off as Jadeite raised a single finger for silence, the digit crackling with dark power.

"Blood-thirsty and ambitious, aren't you Flau? You'd do well with Zoicite, I don't doubt. No, I have a special assignment for you. I will personally lead an operation—the one Morga would have gone on next—in the hopes of drawing out Morga's killers. When they appear on the scene, you will aid me in _crushing the life_ out of them."

The combat-youma smiled nastily. "It will be my pleasure, General."

"You wish for me to perform a short-term, loud operation, correct general?" Balm asked.

"Perceptive as always, Balm. Yes, I need a quick-and-sloppy stop-gap to make up for the energy Morga lost. I leave the details to you."

"I will not disappoint, sir," the fortune-teller promised.

"General, will you also be organizing the missions we had scheduled for the near future?" Murid asked.

"I will provide supervision where necessary," Jadeite informed her, "but overall I shall trust your judgment on the matter, Murid. Which troops were you thinking of using?"

"Derella, Garoben, and Kyurene," she explained quickly. "All three are skilled enough to masquerade as humans for long periods of time without drawing attention to themselves, and we have operations set up for their specific skill-sets." Jadeite frowned.

"Which operations?"

"Garoben shall gather energy from humans who expend effort in the bettering of their minds. Primarily this is the adolescent age group, so there is less likelihood of them noticing anything amiss, and they are often richer sources of energy than older targets."

"That is acceptable. Go on."

"Derella shall gather energy from humans who seek to better their bodies through the expending of physical effort. This is expected to leave humans exhausted, so no one will notice anything amiss, and any particularly rich sources she finds can be frozen in her stasis crystal for long-term draining."

"That may be a bit risky, if anyone notices people are going missing. Still, I'll consider it; Derella could easily cloud the mind of anyone who investigates too closely. And the last one?" Jadeite asked, his eyes distant as he thought.

"Kyurene will gather energy from humans who seek to increase their popularity and social status. Again, this is often younger humans, so fewer people will notice anything amiss."

"A good plan," Jadeite allowed, "but I have an operation in the works that is better suited for Kyurene's talents. You will have to use another operative."

"…I'm not certain we have another operative with her level of control over the human mind," Murid admitted, fiddling with her apple. "The only ones with that level of precision are myself, Morga, Kyurene, and Derella. Maybe…Derella's mission is not as mentally intensive, so would it be possible to switch her to Kyurene's assignment and use another youma in her place, General?"

"Give the assignment to Kyokudo," Jadeite ordered. "He's very physically oriented, so such an assignment should work well for him."

"As you will, General Jadite," Murid said. She bowed, and vanished into the labyrinth of caves. He turned away as well.

"Come Flau, we have sheep to shear."

* * *

"Are you okay, Usagi?" Toharu asked the blonde as she slipped into her seat a few minutes before the bell and slumped over.

"Just tired," Usagi answered. "I stayed up too late last night, listening to the radio. Hey, where's Naru? She normally beats me here."

"I'm not sure."

"I walked by her store on the way to school, and there was a police car parked in front of it. The place was ransacked! I bet that Rose Robber guy hit it and she's talking to the police," Sayuri told them.

_You don't know the half of it,_ Usagi thought to herself. "Maybe, but then where's Umino?"

"No clue."

"Stand! Bow! Sit!" the class representative called as Ms. Haruna entered the room.

"Good morning everyone," the teacher said cheerfully.

_I bet her date went well last night,_ several students thought, noting her cheerful smile. The dirtier-minded ones wondered how much sleep she'd had the previous night.

"Good morning Ms. Haruna," everyone chorused as she began calling role. Right when she called, "Mahera, Sayuri," the door swung open. Everyone turned to watch the unlucky student get reamed out. Usagi hoped it would be Naru, not that she wanted Naru to get in trouble, but that her friend was well enough to come to school. Instead it was a bedraggled Umino in the doorway.

"You're late," Ms. Haruna said sharply. The light shone eerily off of her glasses, and the poor nerd gulped.

"I, well, you see," Umino stuttered, about to be sent to the hall, when Usagi jumped to his rescue.

"Umino, were you checking that Naru wasn't hurt after meeting the Rose Robber? That's so sweet," she gushed with a bright smile.

"I—yes!" he yelped. "I saw her store got hit and I stopped to ask what happened. She's fine," he added, relieved to have been given an excuse. Ms. Haruna frowned, but sighed in acceptance.

"Very well, then," she said, clearly not believing his excuse, but unable to poke a hole in it, "since you were checking on the well-being of a classmate, I won't punish you today. But I expect you to bring her today's work, afterschool."

"Yes, Ms. Haruna," he sighed, relieved. Umino slipped into an empty seat, and a few minutes later a note fell onto his desk.

You owe me big. –Tsukiyomi. He recognized it as Usagi's handwriting, and the penname she used to keep from being found out if the teachers caught the note. He scribbled a reply.

I really _was_ checking up on Naru! Scout's honor! He passed the note to the side, knowing it would find its way onto the blonde's desk. A few minutes later, it was back on his.

You're not a scout. What's more, her house isn't on your way to school, so unless you stopped by on the way just on the off-chance of seeing her when she should already have been in school…So, where were you really? –Tsukiyomi He sighed. Usagi knew him way too well. Of course, it was expected, since he'd known her and Naru since elementary school, and they'd known each other even longer.

Okay, I owe you. Thanks for the save. I wanted to go to the opening of a new Fortune Teller place this morning. I saw it on the way and wanted to check my fortune, but chickened out at the thought of cutting class and ran back. A little too late, I guess. Is Naru okay? He passed the note back when Ms. Haruna's back was turned, and got a fresh sheet of paper from Usagi a few minutes later.

I think she's fine, but I'm checking after school. You _will_ be coming with me—Naru'll want to see you. Then I want to see this new fortune place. It sounds…interesting. As for owing me one, just remember you do, and I'll call it in later. –Tsukiyomi Umino just nodded to Usagi, balling up the note and shoving it in his pocket.

Usagi sat back in her desk and started taking notes. _I wonder if he caught the hint,_ she wondered. She'd specifically included the 'Naru'll want to see you,' bit in the hopes that he'd finally get the hint that Naru liked him. _Why_ her best friend was fond of the nerd Usagi didn't know, especially since the redhead's tastes usually went towards older—_too much_ older—men.

But the lady-like redhead was one of two people in the world (Shingo being the second) whom Usagi wanted nothing but the best for, even at cost to herself. Naru was way out of Umino's usual dating league, but if the choice was Umino or an older man who probably wanted nothing good from her, then Usagi would do her d_ed best to stick her two oldest friends together at the mouth.

No matter how many people she had to blackmail, trick, and intimidate to do it.

* * *

"So who should I hunt down and kill?" Usagi asked as she and Umino walked into Naru's bedroom.

"Someone already beat you to it," the redhead replied wanly. "A superhero like Sailor V." Usagi wrapped her arms tightly around her friend.

"You saw Sailor V?" Umino yelped, and then winced when he got a good look at Naru. She was in bed, wearing a loose t-shirt and sweatpants, and her neck was a mass of bruises. Her eyes were red with large bags under them, her cheeks were wet and streaked, and her hair was a sweaty, bedraggled mess. "What happened to you?"

Umino followed Usagi's lead and pulled their friend into a group hug. She let out a strangled gasp and started shaking. Had her tears not already been spent, she would have started crying.

"I saw Sa-ailor V. Or s-someone like her…I don't r-really remember. They said that w-was normal—people blocked out b-bad m-memories." She broke off and Usagi pulled her closer.

"Shhh, we're here," the blonde whispered, slipping into the bed next to her. She began quietly humming a lullaby as her friend started shaking. Umino pulled away awkwardly, only for Usagi to glare at him. She jerked her head toward Naru again. He shakily nodded, stepped forward and re-initiated a hug.

"Thanks," Naru choked out after several minutes. "It means a lot…"

"You'd do the same thing for me. You did," Usagi responded bluntly.

"So…was it the Rose Robber?" Umino asked. He wilted under Usagi's glare, but Naru didn't break down.

"No. I said I saw Sailor V, right?"

"She did this to you?" Usagi asked, wondering if her friend was misremembering...Or if she really was possessed and spreading misinformation, which is what she'd do in the Dark Kingdom's place. If another youma had taken Naru's place, heads would roll, and the streets would run red-would run _green_ with blood.

"No, one of the monsters she fights did. That thing was…like nothing else. Disgusting. Out of this world."

"But it's gone now, right?"

"I know what I saw!" Naru snapped, nearly shrieking. Had it been anyone else they would have gotten an equally snappy reply, if not an out-and-out slap, but it wasn't. It was Naru. So Usagi bit back harsh words and took a deep, calming breath.

"I believe you," she said through clenched teeth, and forcibly relaxed her jaw with another breath. "I'm not calling you crazy. I just meant if Sailor…V had killed the monster, or if it got away."

"It's dead," Naru said. "I saw it collapse into dust. I even saw the police take samples of the dust. They laughed when I told them it was a monster." Naru grit her teeth. "I know what I saw, and I saw a monster." She paused and then added on, "I'm not sure I saw Sailor V, though."

"You think it was another sailor?" Umino asked eagerly, pulling out a small notebook as he entered nerd-mode. Usagi glared at him, and rolled her eyes when he didn't notice. "There's long been a theory among fans that Sailor V is actually several different heroines, because of all the places she's shown up. She first appeared, people think, right here in Japan when she fought against an outbreak of odd activity over in Kyoto. The police couldn't do anything about the disappearances, but Sailor V solved them all!"

"Umino," Usagi interrupted, but he continued on.

"Then after a month, or some people say it's closer to six weeks, she began showing up in London, where she became famous enough that people even started making a movie about her! That's when the video games and light novels started showing up too. People think the author, M. Artemis, is actually Sailor V, but no one's ever found her to ask."

"Umino," the blonde interjected again, but stopped when she saw the small smile on Naru's face. _Fine, if she likes it, let him rant._

"Not only that, but she's fought monsters in Greece and China, too, although it was only once each. And now she's showing up across America, maybe because they're filming her movie there. A lot of fans think that even she couldn't show up so many places, so it must actually be a lot of Sailor V's working in different places!" He stopped and looked confused as Naru started laughing, hard, until a tear or two worked its way down her cheeks.

"Oh, Umino," she choked out, "never change."

"Uh…okay? Ow!" He rubbed his head where Usagi had bopped him. "What was that for?"

"Having a nerd-gasm in public," she deadpanned, and Naru started laughing even harder, not calming down for several minutes. "Anyway, Naru, I came by because I was concerned about you, but Umino didn't."

"Huh?" he yelped, him and Naru looking confused. Just as Naru's face started switching to hurt at the implication that he hadn't wanted to see her, Usagi finished the thought.

"Umino was nice enough to _volunteer_ to bring you all the work you missed today, and as a get-well-soon present, he's going to stay here another hour or two and help you get it all done, he told me." She winked suggestively, and Naru blushed lightly.

"But I—"

"_Isn't that right?"_ Usagi asked him, her smile promising murder if he disagreed. And Umino knew that that might not be a turn of phrase-_things_ had happened to some of their classmates in middle school. He swallowed hard.

"Um…yeah, that's right. But, Usagi, didn't you want to see that fortune-teller place?" He swallowed again as Usagi stood up and pushed him down onto the bed next to Naru.

"It's between your house and the school; I'll find it myself," she told him, twirling a lock of Naru's hair around her finger. "Who knows, maybe I'll ask where I can find Sailor V so I can thank her for saving me the trouble of tracking down that youma." _Oh crud, please tell me they didn't notice that I knew what to call it._ She stepped back and turned the doorknob.

"Moon," Naru corrected quietly. Usagi froze in the doorway and her head snapped back around. "I didn't see her face, but her hair was different, and she called herself Sailor Moon, not Sailor V."

"Moon. Got it. Right." Usagi relaxed, her identity (presumably—Naru might have been lying because Umino was around) safe, and headed down the steps, out the door, and toward the route Umino took to school. She fumbled in her bag for her cell phone, but something else buzzed first.

_Since when do I have a pink hand-mirror? _She wondered. _That buzzes?_ On the back she noticed the same Crescent Moon pattern as was on her (magical transformation amulet disguised as a) brooch. She flipped open the compact, stepping into an alley and behind a dumpster, so no one in their right mind would spy on her. The screen winked on.

"Didn't I ask you to come home directly after school?" Luna asked snidely. "I still have things to talk to you about regarding your work as a senshi."

"I'm sorry," Usagi began politely, only for her face to get more and more plastic. "I was visiting Naru. You know, my _best friend,_ who was attacked and almost _killed_ by a youma last night.

"Whose life I only arrived _just in time_ to save, along with the other dozen people in the shop, in spite of the fact that they, and _I_, had been doing almost nothing for most of the _past hour_ before then.

"Whose life might have been lost if I hadn't realized something was up and _dragged_ the secret of transforming out of you with an iron hook.

"Who just last night got introduced to a world most people don't know exist and is trying to cope without going crazy, and desperately needs support from her best friend. That Naru? Ring a bell, Luna?"

The cat had wilted lower and lower under Usagi's polite onslaught, and was looking rather guilty. "The operation wouldn't have been fatal for another hour or so, at the minimum. Gathering energy, especially that much, takes a lot of time," Luna objected weakly.

"Are you willing to bet your life on that, Luna? Because you bet _hers_. I'll be a senshi and I will _destroy_ the youma, but I won't let it be all that I am. I will still spend time with my friends, I will still run track, and I will still act my age. Which is, in case you forgot, fifteen. Now, I've just dropped Naru's crush off with her and I'm going to check out something. I will be home in half an hour if nothing blows up, at which point we can talk either before or after I do my homework. Am I clear?"

"Yes," Luna said quietly, and then added, "I'm sorry, Sailor Moon."

"Prove it," Usagi snapped, and closed the compact. She dug out her cell phone a second later and cycled through the contacts. "Come on, pick up…Hey, Ichiro…Well, I heard about this new place, House of Fortune, and…you know where it is? Where? …Could you show me? You know, just the _two_ of us? _Good_...I'll meet you there in five. Thanks!"

* * *

A few minutes later she found herself across the street from a gaudy shop with thick velvet drapes in the window and a neon sign proclaiming it the 'House of Fortune'.

"So this place just opened?" she asked the pimply otaku.

"Yeah, it's weird," Ichiro told her. "Yesterday I would have sworn that it was an empty building. This morning it was advertising its grand opening, and—" he swung his hand, indicating the line of people literally out the door. "Makes me wonder how accurate they are, but I usually use the old man if I feel like getting a fortune told."

"Old man?" Ichiro turned and indicated a robed figure sitting at a stand draped with purple cloth in the entrance of an alley behind them. Usagi blinked—she'd walked past him without noticing. The old man was eyeing the line despairingly, lacking any customers of his own. "The old guy's pretty accurate. Probably cheeper, too." A person walked out of the House of Fortune, allowing someone else to walk in, and a plan clicked together in Usagi's mind.

"Right!" she cried, smacking her fist into her open palm. "Comparison time! I'll go ask the old guy for a fortune, and you go get one from there, and we'll see whose is more accurate."

"Huh? Why do I have to go to the House of Fortune? The old guy is cheaper, and I'm saving up for a Jump membership!" Usagi turned the full force of her baby-blues on him, leaning in close enough that Ichiro could smell her shampoo.

"Pleeeeease?"

"I—I guess," he acceded weakly.

"Good boy," Usagi said, and pecked him on the lips. He blushed, and stumbled off to the line when Usagi pushed lightly. She turned and skipped over to the old man's table, gracing him with a bright smile. "Hi! You tell fortunes here, right?"

"That I do, miss," he chuckled. "Real ones, too. Not just the glamor and flash that's all the fad, these days."

"How much?" she asked, and handed him a few bills when he answered. He handed her a deck of tarot cards in return.

"Shuffle these, and deal out two face-down, next to each other. One represents your past, and one represents your present. Which is which?" Usagi decided that the one her right was the present, and he dealt out three more cards around it, changing it from a – pattern to a + pattern. "The one on the far side of the past card represents your distant future, while the two on the sides represent the near future. Now turn over the past card first."

"It looks like a…battlefield?" Usagi hazarded.

"Yes. It seems there was suffering and violence in your past. Would you say that's correct?" The old man looked up and choked when he saw that her face had gone blank and flat. She didn't answer the question, instead flipping up the center of the five-card cross, the present card, without prompting.

"What's this? A man pushing a boulder up a hill?"

"Daedalus. You have been burdened with a difficult task. There's something far more serious in your life than ordinary examinations and dating," he said shrewdly. There was a long silence as Usagi and he stared each other down.

"If you're the real deal," Usagi began, now believing that he was, "why are you telling fortunes in an alley? Couldn't you foretell lottery numbers and get rich, or at least advise politicians or something?"

"Because I can only foretell others' fortunes, and not my own," he said with a sad chuckle. "And because politicians tend to get uneasy over the possibility that someone knows more than them. They blamed me for bad news the first few times I worked in that business. After that, never again."

"If they're that stupid, they deserve whatever comes to them," Usagi said scornfully. "If I were a politician I'd hire every genuine fortuneteller I could get my hands on."

"Oh? Your fortune hasn't been the best thus far, and you didn't look too happy about it. What if the bad news gets worse?"

"Then I'll know something is coming and can batten down the hatches. Worst comes to worst, I write up a will and enjoy what time I have left." The fortuneteller leaned backwards, discomfited by the casual way in which she mentioned her own possible death.

"Well, I doubt it will be that bad," he said uneasily. "Turn up one of the other cards." Usagi flipped up one of the near future cards. "Someone important will soon arrive in your life. A new boyfriend perhaps?" He smiled weakly at her blank face as she flipped up the other near-future card.

"What's this one mean?" she asked calmly when he hesitated. "It doesn't look like death."

"Right-side up the weaver refers to a great creation or work of art. Upside-down, however…it means to warn you of a plot."

"A plot aimed at me?"

"I do not know. Are you the type to plot something?" Usagi smiled sweetly at the question and flipped up the last card. She blinked.

"Okay, _this_ one might be death," she considered. "Does it mean that I don't _have_ a future, or just that it's undecided?"

The card was blank.

"I've…this has never happened before," the fortune-teller admitted, examining the plain white cardstock of the card. He flipped it over, but the back was identical to the other cards in his deck. "How about you draw a new card, just to try?" Usagi flipped up the top card of the deck and raised her eyebrow.

It was blank as well.

"How is that possible?" the old man wheezed. He quickly rifled through his deck. Every card except for the four on the table were blank.

"Magic. Go figure," Usagi said with a shrug, trying to hide how anxious she suddenly felt. Knowing she should be grateful for the warning and actually doing it were two different things.

"I suppose," he said weakly. "It will take me a few days to get a new deck, though."

"Hey," Usagi argued defensively, not wanting to shell out even more money. "If you're not responsible for bad news then I'm not responsible for your deck."

"True, true. It's not your fault." He stood up and began picking up the cards. "If you'll excuse me, I believe I'll close shop early today."

"You need a freaking drink?" Usagi queried with a smile.

"Several," he replied seriously.

It was only a minute later that Ichiro walked out from his turn in the House of Fortune. "So how was it?"

"She was really hot," Ichiro babbled, and flushed when he realized what he just said. "I think her fortune was the real deal. I'll have to see if it comes true. Anyway, I'm heading home to catch Bleach."

"Hey, what did she say?" Usagi yelled after him, but he turned the corner. She frowned and debated chasing after him. _I don't think he looked brainwashed, and he definitely wasn't drained from what I could see. Maybe this was a bust after all. I'll get Luna to check it out or something._

* * *

"_That was Michiru Kaioh with a song from her most recent album, Ocean Lullabies. Up next we have a new song from The Wandering Stars, performed for the first time at their concert two days ago: The Lonely Comet."_ Music once more began to flow from the radio as Usagi's pencil scribbled across the paper.

"Hey Luna, is this the right spelling?"

"I really wouldn't know," the cat drawled, not even glancing at the piece of English homework. "Are you just about done yet?"

"This is the last bit…and done!" Usagi slipped the papers into a folder and shoved it in her backpack. "Alright, what did you want to talk about that has you in a huff?"

"I'm not that bad," Luna objected, rising off the bed and stretching. "I just want you to take your duties as Sailor Moon a little more seriously. Lives are at stake."

"Didn't we have this conversation earlier?" Usagi sighed and turned around to lock eyes with Luna. "I will take my duties seriously, but I won't be able to save people if I'm grounded for failing classes, or burned-out from not relaxing."

"I know, and I agree with that," Luna conceded. "But I don't think you need so much relaxation after only _one day_ of being a senshi. If you'd come home we would have more time to discuss and to practice your senshi abilities."

"I wasn't just goofing off, I was investigating a possible draining operation," Usagi told her. Luna's tail stood straight up.

"And you couldn't have mentioned this sooner! Going in alone like that was very dangerous. What if it had been an ambush?"

"I was in no danger what-so-ever," Usagi assured her blithely. "There's this new place called the House of Fortune that showed up out of nowhere and became instantly popular. I thought it might be the Dark Kingdom."

"That does sound a little like them. So you patronized this place?"

"No, I sent one of my classmates in."

"You sent who! What if he'd been attacked? Weren't you upset that people were in danger last night, and now you're doing the same thing!"

"That was Naru, and this was Ichiro-I'm not as worried about him, and the possible operation is more important. When he came out he didn't looked drained or hypnotized, from what I could see, so I'm not sure. I figure you can check it out tonight while I check him out tomorrow, and if we see anything odd we'll look deeper."

"I can't say I approve of you using other innocents as test subjects...but was very proactive of you. I apologize," Luna said, impressed if a bit upset. "Now, what I wanted to discuss was basic information about the Dark Kingdom and the senshi, so you know what to expect."

"Start with the Dark Kingdom. Where do they come from, what do they want, etcetera," Usagi told her. "Here's what I know, so you can skip it. They're called the Dark Kingdom, they use monsters that used to be humans, they drain people's life-force, and the last time they got loose they destroyed this big kingdom in the past, and I have to stop it from happening again. That right?"

"Yes, that's about all that we covered yesterday," Luna agreed. "They have powerful magic and can disguise themselves as humans, as well as hypnotize humans to do their bidding. They drain people's life energy, but it takes a long time for them to drain all of it, which is fatal. Even a short time under the drain, however, is enough to render most people unconscious, so they cannot escape further draining."

"Why do they need life-energy? Do they eat it, or something?"

"I do not know," Luna admitted, "but if they want it then it is best we stop them from getting it, yes?"

"Yeah, you're right," Usagi said. "Now, am I working alone, or is there a group of people working in several different places to stop them?"

"Well, according to Central Control—"

"_Central Control!_ You guys are organized enough to have something like that! Just how big is this organization?" Usagi asked, wondering at what resources she could call on. This had definite potential.

"Not big at all," Luna told her, crushing her hopes. "Central Control is my contact who suggested that I search in Tokyo, and provided me with some information I forgot. I'm not certain, but they are either a survivor of the genocide like myself, or an artificial intelligence on the Moon's main computers."

"Those still work?"

"They still work," Luna confirmed. "However, according to Central Control, the only other person fighting the Dark Kingdom is Sailor V, who has her hands full as it is."

"So we're waging a two-girl war against the guys who wiped out an entire civilization?" Usagi said skeptically.

"A rather dark perspective, but yes. It won't stay a two-person war once we find the other senshi, however."

"Just great," Usagi said thinking of all the problems involved. _If I don't get some magical twisting of fate then we'll never find the others out of the billions of people around._ "So, what didn't you tell me about being a senshi yesterday?"

Luna coughed. "I believe I covered most of it, and the rest won't be important until you are ready to ascend a level." Usagi frowned.

"You mentioned there were a bunch of levels to senshi power. What does that mean?"

"At the moment, you are a basic-class senshi," Luna told her. "This is the simplest and weakest level, where you can only use your powers as you received them, without any alterations, improvements, or control."

"I'd make a snarky comment, except I still kicked butt last night, so it's not too bad. I'm guessing higher levels are even better?"

"Yes. Basic level is just to get your body used to using and having senshi powers. It is like firing a gun. No matter how hard or gently you pull the trigger the bullet comes out with the same amount of force—al you can do is aim. Prism-class, however, is like swinging a sword. You can alter the speed, direction, and style of your attacks. In short, until you reach prism-class, you will be unable to improve as a senshi. It is the difference between a seed in a packet and a seed growing in the ground."

"And practicing my powers won't make me any better with them, but will let me level up quicker? How do I know when I can…you said ascend, right?"

"Yes, the term is ascend. And you will not, but I will, and I will use my powers to level you up."

Usagi frowned. "I can't do it myself?"

"It was meant as a safeguard. Senshi cannot improve past certain points without external help. It was to prevent senshi from becoming too powerful if they go rogue."

"But you said some of them could at a certain level?"

"Either Sacred- or Crystal- class. I forget exactly which. But if a senshi gets to that level they are either trusted enough that they don't need to be kept from going rogue, or so powerful that there wouldn't be much we could do to stop them if they _did_ go rogue."

"And you can't level me up early?"

"Not without potentially killing you," Luna said darkly. Usagi winced and nodded.

"Message received. No short-cuts." _D***it._ "What are the other levels?"

Luna began to explain. "You begin at basic. When your powers begin to grow, you've reached prism level. When you can not only alter your spells, but the fields of energy that infuse you as a senshi, you have reached planet-class."

"How would I do that?"

"The most common example," Luna told her, "Is turning your disguise field on and off. But even then you still have certain limits. When you can surpass these limits and call upon more raw power than is usually safe for your body, you ascend to crisis class. It's called this because it is usually occurs during a time of crisis—a do-or-die situation."

"But isn't calling upon 'more raw power than is usually safe for your body' sort dangerous by definition?"

"Yes, which is why almost half of all senshi never go beyond crisis-class. They either die by calling on too much power, or they simply lack the drive to advance further."

"Ugh."

"My feelings _exactly,_" Luna agreed. "Crisis-class calls upon your raw power through desperation and determination, tapping into that well unconsciously. Crystal-class requires you to do so consciously, and to control the power you call upon."

"Doesn't sound too bad."

"Half of all senshi never make it to crystal-class. Of the ones that do, almost two-thirds never make it _beyond._"

"Right, it's harder than it sounds. Sacred was after crystal, right?"

"Yes. Sacred, then star, and then eternal. Unfortunately, I cannot remember anything about these levels, having not been needed to assist once they ascended that far."

Usagi sighed and repeated what would surely become a common mantra. _I will resist the urge to dropkick the obscenely cute and fuzzy whatsit which follows my party around. There's no telling what powers it has, and the last thing I need is for her to refuse to level me up._

"So we should try to get in some training tonight, right?" Usagi asked looking at her clock and then out the window.

"Yes, the park should be mostly empty at this time, leaving you and hour or two to practice."

"Can do," Usagi agreed.

* * *

"Moon Tiara Magic." A thick tree branch fell to the ground, cleanly severed. Usagi noted that it was cut, but not burned by the energy, as her tiara returned to her.

"Moon Tiara Magic." The glowing disc (it looked a lot like a frisbee, but Luna had forbidden her from using such a disrespectful name for it) arced out across the water, cutting nothing until it reached its distance limit and began to arc back. Usagi noted that the tiara had made it only halfway across the park's lake before turning back. While it had cut nothing originally, on its return trip it sliced apart another tree branch, meeting no visible resistance.

"Moon Tiara Magic." The tiara arced into a mass of bushes, severing a number of branches before returning to her.

"Moon...Tiara...Magic!" She simply looked at the glowing circle, satisfied with the fact that it had only activated on the third word, but that she felt felt it charging before that. Sailor Moon dispelled the energy and placed the tiara back on her head, then she slumped to the ground and dispelled her transformation.

"Okay, I have about ten of those in me before the exhaustion hits...lets assume I could do two more if I _really_ had to," she muttered to herself, and yawned loudly. She'd saved testing her attack for its limits for last precisely because she suspected that it would leave her exhausted. that being said, she was proud of the specifics she had worked out.

One: Her attack didn't have an effective limit (she hadn't discovered it) on how many things it could cut through without losing power, but it did have a distance limit. If she had to eyeball it, she'd guess it was between eight and ten meters, at which point her tiara would turn around and home in on her. She could not control its direction once she threw it, even whether it turned around to the left or the right.

Two: She could not increase the distance her attack could travel no matter how hard she threw it; a flick of the wrist was as good as a full-body frisbee throw. However, if she moved after she threw the disk, it would home in on her new location instead of where she started, so she could aim it on the way back, to an extent. Unfortunately, if she ran too far it would run out of power and fall back to the ground.

Three: If she was not holding her tiara in one of her hands, she could not use the spell. If it was on the ground, she had to pick it up. If it was still on her head, she had to take it off. If it was dangling off of her foot, or on her arm like an elbow, it wouldn't work. And if one of her hands was near it (such as when it was resting on the ground) but not touching, she needed to touch it.

Four: The spell only activated once she had said all three words of the incantation in order (but not consecutively), with the intent of activating the spell. Saying "Tiara Magic Moon" would do nothing, but "Moon random stuff Tiara blah blah Magic," would activate the spell. There was not a word limit on how much she could say between the incantation's words, but there was a time limit of about seven seconds.

It wasn't everything she'd wanted to accomplish, but it was all that she'd be doing tonight, given how exhausted she was. _At least_, Usagi consoled herself, _I also got to test out my fuku and transformation speed._

Her head was still a little too vulnerable for her comfort, but what tests she had dared to do (given what would happen if her protections failed during a test) suggested that anything powerful enough to kill her wouldn't be stopped by a helmet anyways. And besides, even if it was a good idea, she still had her pride. If her life wasn't in immediate danger, then she wouldn't swallow a pill as bitter as being seen in a fuku and bike helmet, never mind the pan lids on her knees.

As for her transformation speed, it appeared that Luna had been telling the truth when she called it almost instantaneous. She'd even jumped off of a tree branch in civilian guise, transformed mid-air, and been done before she hit the ground. Seeing Luna coming across the clearing, she stood up again and wearily transformed so that they could finally go home. She wanted to _sleep_, d***it!

* * *

At lunch the next day Usagi found a secluded corridor and pulled out her communicator.

"Luna? That House of Fortune place is _definitely_ a draining operation."

"What! Are you sure?" the cat asked as her face appeared in the compact.

"Several of my classmates, including Ichiro, were acting really weird today. _Really_ weird. Umino flipped Ms. Haruna's skirt and Ichiro came on to me."

"Came on to you?" Usagi rolled her eyes.

"Propositioned me for sexual favors, hit on me, tried to seduce me—that stuff."

"You're _fourteen_!" Luna yelped.

"Fifteen," Usagi corrected, "and I'm not getting _that_ involved with a guy unless we've been dating at least year, period. I kneed him in the balls. Listen, I need you to come over here and tell me how much time they have so I know whether to smash the operation now or after school. Everyone is still walking around, but they don't exactly look healthy."

"I'll be right over," Luna promised. Three minutes later Usagi was eating lunch beneath a tree, having waved off the usual group that crowded around her, and Luna was perched in a branch above.

"This…this is very interesting," Luna mused. "I've heard about something like this from Central control when Sailor V was in America, but never on this scale."

"Look, are they in danger or not?"

"Not yet," Luna assured her. "They've been hypnotized, but there's a second spell on them that causes their energy levels to rise when they act out, so that the Dark Kingdom will get almost three times as much energy from a single person as usual. But the drain won't begin until they hit their peak energy levels this evening, I believe," Luna assured her.

"How did V handle it in America?"

"She didn't. This method is similar, but in America Sailor V fought individual people who had their energy levels brought up to ten or fifteen times as much by being possessed by a youma. This is multiple people under a single youma's thrall, all being raised two or three times."

"Do I have to worry about youma possessing people?"

"No, it's difficult to do, and the youma can be destroyed relatively easily," Luna assured her. "And everyone should be back to normal once you destroy this youma, so it can wait until this evening."

"I'm going to go sit with my friends then, Luna."

"I will see you after school, Usagi. I'm just going to check that this House of Fortune is what we're looking for." They both paused as suddenly an outcry came from across the field. Usagi looked up to see Umino leading a group of students in an assault on the teachers' lounge.

"Oh man, their gonna find themselves up the creek without a paddle when they wake up. I can't what to take pictures," Usagi snickered.

"Not everyone is as callous as you, at least," Luna said drily, and nodded towards a certain redhead. Usagi blew out a huff.

"Ruin my fun why don't you...Fine. I'm gonna go try to keep him from getting expelled," Usagi grumbled, seeing Naru looking on with horror.

* * *

"So…how are we going to do this?" Usagi wondered, staring at the House of Fortune from a nearby alley. "Do we know she hasn't set up a trap or anything inside? For that matter, is she inside?"

"The youma was inside when I checked earlier, and I haven't seen her come out," Luna told her. "Are you certain that you can't just walk in the front door?"

"I'm pretty sure the youma would see me coming from a mile away, and attack first. Or cut her losses and run. I'd rather get this done quickly and quietly. Are you sure there isn't a backdoor or side entrance?"

"I checked thoroughly this afternoon. Nothing," Luna repeated. "If you don't go in it may be too late. By my calculations they will reach their energy peak within ten minutes, if they haven't already, and then the youma will begin the drain."

"Fine, I get it," Usagi groused. "I'm just being cautious, okay?" She beat her head lightly against the brick wall, enjoying that it didn't really hurt. The magical protections on her fuku kept it from being damaged, even when she took off one of her gloves and used scissors on it, and slightly lesser protection extended to the rest of her.

Currently, she was in an alley down the street from the house of Fortune, waiting to smash her first operation that wasn't an emergency. "If I mess this up it could give the Dark Kingdom a huge opening," she muttered to Luna. "All I…wait."

People were stumbling down the street, converging on the House of Fortune. Usagi blinked, seeing Umino amid their ranks. Then she blinked again, surprised to see Ichiro there as well, given that he was still sporting the black eye and bloody nose she'd given him when he pulled her hair.

_Hypnotized or not, some things you don't get away with_, she thought to herself sourly, idly stroking one of her blonde streamers.

"Luna, I've got an idea. The Dark Kingdom won't recognize me, right?"

"No, they won't associate Usagi and Sailor Moon, nor will anyone else, thanks to your disguise field. What are you doing!" Usagi had stepped out of the alley and was casually walking towards the mob that was slowly entering the House of Fortune.

"If I lose the tiara and gems," she explained, her hand removing the objects in question, "I look like any other school girl, right? I'll just pretend to be one of the victims, walk in, and strike when the youma's back is turned."

"But," Luna tried to object, but Usagi had already slipped into the crowd. "Oh dear," Luna murmured, and began weaving her way through the throng of legs. Inside, the youma was addressing the group of victims.

"Come to me, my slaves," she crooned as they assembled into rank-and-file in front of her. "Come and give me all your energy, and I, Balm, shall bring glory to the Dark Kingdom. Come to me, in the name of our Great Ruler." Usagi stepped into the ranks, taking her place seamlessly among the group of victims. Her left hand held her hair-gems, and her right held her tiara. She slipped the metal disk behind her back and whispered the words of her incantation.

"Moon…Tiara…" She felt the energy begin to charge, but it didn't yet assume the glowing disk she attacked with. That would be a giveaway, and she wanted a clear shot before revealing herself. She froze as something touched her legs, and just barely glanced down, hoping the youma didn't notice.

It was Luna.

"I'll draw its attention," the cat whispered, almost drowned out by the youma's gloating to itself, and began moving to the far side of the room.

"I have predicted that an enemy shall come tonight, so let them come," Balm chuckled to itself. "I shall prove a stronger foe than Morga, and will return with their head to show my fellows."

"Oh, really?" Luna's voice called from the shadows.

"What!" the youma yelled just as Usagi whispered the final word of her chant.

"…Magic." The disk hummed to life in her hand.

"Foul denizen of the darkness, you shall be burnt away by the light of justice!" Luna's voice called from the shadows.

"Show yourself and die like the dog—" Balm began, turning away, and Usagi's hand whipped out. The spell hit Balm in the center of her back, and she dissolved into dust with barely a scream. Like puppets with their strings cut, the other victims fell to the ground, and most of the shop's decorations disappeared into dust.

"That went well," Moon said to herself.

"Indeed," said a voice from the rafters. Moon immediately threw herself to the side and prepared to fight, but Tuxedo Kamen made no move to attack. "A wise warrior may often succeed where a strong warrior fails, and you, Sailor Moon, have both qualities in abundance. Remember also that there are those who will help you in your fight, should you need it." He disappeared into the shadows.

_Love interest. Almost definitely a love interest,_ Usagi thought to herself, resigned. _And he's been _a lot _of help thus far._

* * *

"So Luna," Usagi began, back in bed that night, "is it just me, or did it sound like that youma knew I was coming?"

"Well, it's quite possible that they guessed whoever had stopped their jewelry operation would also target them this time," the cat suggested.

"Not just that. The whole fortuneteller schtick. Do you think that the youma saw me coming in the future or whatever? Can magic really see the future?"

"Well, it's a very imperfect art, but precognition is a well documented power that can be developed. Often most mid-level mages can achieve some level of it if they spend enough time and effort." Usagi's eyes had opened wide at the possibilities, especially as she had met someone like that earlier. To have it confirmed...the advantages and uses were almost endless.

"Luna…how could anyone ever lose with a power like that? Knowing what's coming gives you the chance to prepare for it, like studying for a pop-quiz." Luna gave her an odd look. "What I mean is: why didn't the Silver Millennium see the Dark Kingdom's attack coming?"

Luna sighed. "Well, the first thing you have to understand is that the future is never set in stone. So what you see might not come to be, or by seeing it you keep it from occurring. Prophecies are more like warning of what to look out for and avoid, or instructions on what to do to get a certain result."

"So no one saw the catastrophe that was the attack? Seriously?"

"People knew something bad was happening, or could happen, but we thought our actions were taken to prevent it." It was Usagi's turn to give Luna a questioning look. "We knew that there was the possibility of an attack coming from Earth, so we tried to forge closer relations to the planet so that we would be allies. Unfortunately, the attack didn't come from Earth's government, which was friendly with our own, but from dissidents upset by the Moon and Earth's growing connections."

"So by trying to avoid it, you just made it worse," Usagi commiserated. "I suppose it would have been out of the question to launch a pre-emptive strike so that Earth _couldn't_ attack."

"And kill thousands of innocents who were in favor of joining with the Moon? Queen Serenity would have been disgusted by even the thought of it," Luna scolded.

"So by sparing thousands of another country's people, she killed millions of her own," Usagi counter-argued, before shaking her head and sighing. "Look, I don't want to have this argument at all. Let's go back to seeing the future. How would I learn how to do it? It would be really nice to know what curveballs the Dark Kingdom is going to throw at me."

"I couldn't tell you, since I don't know myself," Luna said. "I remember that meditation was a big part of it, and often they would be gazing into a medium such as fire, water, or a mirror, as though they were scrying, except, of course, they were looking through time instead of space."

"Scrying?"

"Magically observing a distant place," Luna explained. "It can be used to search for objects or people, but it is also a touch imprecise, and it can only observe what is occurring at the current moment. Also, no sound."

"Can you teach me how to do _that_?"

"I don't know how, either."

"Well," Usagi asked, exasperated, "what _do_ you know?"

"Mind magic," Luna began, "which takes much more skill than I can easily teach you. Also, my style is unique to my species, and you're a human."

"Great," Usagi grumbled.

"Aside from that, most of my specialties are aimed toward technomancy, or at helping senshi develop their own abilities. And before you ask, your civilization doesn't have the requisite magical or mechanical development to make it particularly useful to you. All that would do me much good is to teach you to develop your senshi abilities, which I was doing anyway."

Usagi sighed in acceptance. "Fine, fine. So basically, I just have to keep using my powers?"

"For the moment, yes," Luna told her. "After you ascend to prism-class there will be much more I can begin teaching you, but for now you simply need to acclimate your body to senshi magic."

"Can do," she said, and lay back on her bed. Idly she turned on the radio. "I'll go practice after this, it's my favorite."

"_Welcome to Mad Men's Music show,"_ the radio blared. "_Half an hour of non-stop music to suit your wildest, weirdest dreams. Before we begin, we'd like to ask you to show your support to a new radio program beginning tonight at 11:30 to midnight: Jade's Midnight Zero! They'll be accepting love letters from all over the country, and if yours is moving enough to be read aloud, you'll win a wonderful prize. So pour your hearts out, all you lovely ladies, and maybe Prince Charming will take the hint."_

* * *

And that's a wrap. Review, and read my other stories as well, if they look appealing.


	3. Chapter 3

Yes, updates will be coming eventually to my other stories as well. This is just the most fun to write for the moment, but I'm grinding away at the others.

**LoveInTheBattlefield:** I intend to.

**Avoided Island:** Ditto above.

**Bouowmx: **I've always felt that it's the little touches that make stories brilliant. Show, don't tell.

**mlsmls27:** Glad to know I'm achieving what I was aiming for.

I don't own Sailor Moon.

* * *

"Luna, we need to stop by the hospital after school today," Usagi told her cat as they walked to school.

"It won't be easy for me to get in," the cat demurred, "but I can do it, I suppose. Still, do you really need me there to visit anyone?"

"It's the sleeping sickness that's been going around, Luna. It _can't_ be natural, so I'm betting it's a Dark Kingdom plot, and we need to stop it."

"Not that I'm disagreeing with you, but what makes you so certain?" Luna asked. "It sounds a little like a disease that was around in the Silver Millennium, which made people lethargic and sleepy, and that was perfectly natural."

"The numbers _aren't_," Usagi insisted. "For one thing, why would a disease only target women and girls? And it's in the wrong age range!"

"Age range?"

"If this were a real disease, it would be a virus or bacteria, right? Those normally target really old people and really little kids, because they aren't good at fighting them off. Instead, all the victims have been between thirteen and forty, which is the age-range that should be _hardest_ to get sick!"

"How do you know all this?" Luna asked. "You seem remarkably well informed."

"They only parrot it every year when we need to get flu shots," Usagi answered, rolling her eyes. "After hearing what the at-risk ages are, I think I'd remember at least a little."

"True," Luna agreed, "but wasn't there a flu that specifically targeted people who were usually healthy somewhere in Earth's past? If it's this, then it's natural, and visiting these people would expose you to it. A sick senshi at this time would be a catastrophe."

"There was…I don't think it was bird flu. Spanish flu, maybe? But yeah, we heard about something like that in history class, but it was fifty years ago. But this is too precise to be normal."

"Precise?"

"In the three days since it sprang up, they've got four cases a day _exactly._ That's not normal. Also, it doesn't spread like anyone expects. The victims have nothing aside from age and gender in common. Three of them _don't even live in Tokyo!_ How is it spreading if it isn't through contact? I mean: one of the girls who got it had a _twin sister_ who's still healthy."

"…You're right," Luna decided. "I can't imagine _how _they are accomplishing it, but this does sound like the work of the Dark Kingdom. I'll scout around while you're in school and see if I can catch one of today's victims before they get quarantined inside the hospital."

"You do that," Usagi told the cat, turning her head as Luna scampered away. She turned back just in time to round the corner and come face to face with a green jacket.

"Oof!" She and Mamoru (apparently the jerk was a friend of Motoki's. How someone so sweet could like someone so nasty was a mystery to her) stumbled back, Usagi rubbing her nose.

"Would it _kill_ you to watch where you're going?" she asked snidely.

"I was about to ask you the same thing, Dumpling Head," he responded. "Because if you walk into traffic it really _could_ kill you."

"I bet you'd be overjoyed at that," she drawled. _Well, we're not screaming at each other yet._ "And is Dumpling Head really the best thing you can come up with? You're missing entire _world_ of dumb blonde jokes, if nothing else." Mamoru chuckled.

"Motoki," he explained, "is my best friend. I'd never use a dumb blonde joke that could implicate him. And as for Dumpling head," he reached out and tugged one of her ponytails lightly, "it's easy and obvious."

Usagi's vision flashed red. She shrieked and stormed off in a huff. Mamoru watched her go, rubbing his ribs where she'd rabbit-punched him.

"B**** move," he muttered under his breath, and walked away.

* * *

"Chiyo, spill already!" Usagi pleaded to her classmate over lunch. "Is it a new diet or something, because I've never seen anything like it. Show off and gloat a little, you deserve it!" The embarrassed girl stood up and spun around, displaying the new trim figure she was sporting. Then she staggered, yawned loudly, and plopped back down.

"I started working out," she told the gaggle of girls around her. "It's like the pounds just melted off me! The gym's new program really—" she yawned again, rubbing the bags under her eyes, "—works wonders. You should try it out."

"New program?" Usagi asked sharply. _First a new sale at the Osa-P, then a new fortune telling shop. Now a new gym program? If the Dark Kingdom wanted energy, I wonder how much they could snatch up from people using energy while they work out…and Chiyo looks like she hasn't gotten any sleep. Luna said people recuperate energy by eating and sleeping, so hunger and exhaustion are signs to watch out for. She's clearly exhausted, and it looks like she's already finished her bento._

"Yes, a new program. They have a couple of personal trainers who will help you work out and pace yourself, and then you finish up in a relaxation chamber."

"A relaxation chamber?" Usagi paused, saw that Chiyo's eyes were following the piece of chicken she was waving around on her chopsticks. Following a hunch, she did something completely out of character. "You want some of my bento? You still look starved."

Everyone present blinked. Usagi was playfully known as a bottomless pit, and the other girls wished that they had her metabolism. Other people sharing food with her on days when even her extra-large bento and store-bought snacks weren't enough was pretty common.

Usagi sharing her food with someone else? Almost unheard of.

Chiyo blushed and squirmed. "I couldn't really. I already cleaned out my bento and, and, and," she trailed off, her mouth first going dry and then beginning to water as Usagi waved the aromatic piece of chicken under her nose hypnotically. Her stomach gurgled.

"Just tell me more about the gym thing," Usagi purred, and fed Chiyo the tidbit. Naru snorted, noticing that Usagi's eyes were half closed, and she was purposefully making her voice more languid. Both were sure signs that she was going into flirt mode.

"Just be careful what you say to her when she's like this," the redhead advised as Usagi fed Chiyo another piece, and then just handed her the bento. "If you give her an opening she'll have you in a broom closet with your blouse open before you can blink."

Chiyo choked and promptly imitated a tomato. A few other classmates chuckled as well, while one or two remembered something like that happening to them. Usagi shot Naru a hurt, pouty look.

"Would I do that?" she whined. "It hurts that you don't trust me to act honorably."

"You'd do it in a second, have done it, and will keep doing it for the foreseeable future," Naru deadpanned. "As for honor, your intentions are for fun and nothing else, even if you do obey the No Means No rule." Usagi pretended to be hurt by this unfair accusation, and one other classmate jumped in.

"You'd _know,_ wouldn't you Osaka," he leered playfully, only to blanche under Usagi's death glare.

"Actually, no," Naru told him. "I'm completely straight, and Usagi accepts that, so we've never done anything."

"Really?"

"Yes, _really_," Usagi snapped insistantly. "Naru's my best friend, and my sister in all but blood, so if she isn't interested, I'm not going to push it. I've never done anything more than hug her, so don't paint her with the same brush as me. She's a _good girl._" And it was clear that in spite of how it may have sounded, Usagi meant it as the highest possible compliment.

"Actually, you've kissed me on the cheek a couple of times, but I don't mind," Naru corrected.

"Oh. Well, we've never done anything more than _that_," Usagi concluded. Everyone's heads turned to Naru again, expecting her to correct the blonde again and drag out another piece of their personal history, but Naru just leaned back on her heals and resumed eating her bento. Usagi finally turned her attention back to Chiyo, and—

"Whoa, did you finish that already?" Usagi asked, seeing Chiyo dabbing at her mouth with a napkin.

"Um, yeah," she admitted sheepishly. "Thanks, I owe you one. I've been _starving_ ever since I paid the gym a visit to try out their program, because they said the relaxation chambers would speed up my metabolism a little to help the weight _stay_ lost."

To Naru's surprise, Usagi didn't jump on the 'I owe you one' comment, instead focusing back on the gym. "The chambers can do that?" she asked intently.

"Apparently. They said it was new technology just out of the development and testing phase."

"Which gym is this? I want to try it out."

"Why do _you_ want to lose weight?" Sayuri wondered.

"Well, my metabolism won't last forever," Usagi demurred. "Besides, I'm thin, but I don't have a lot of muscle. I want to change that, get some tone, maybe try a little weight lifting." _Punching out youma, too. _Then her stomach grumbled. "Quiet, you," she ordered, poking herself in the gut.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I completely cleaned out your lunch, didn't I? If there's anything I can do to make it up to you, just say so."

"Well…" Usagi drawled, "You still haven't told me which gym to go take a look at."

"It's called Fitness Works. But I was going to tell you that anyway."

"If you want, then," Usagi hmmed, and Naru raised an eyebrow as her best friend moved in for the kill, "I've been wanting to see _A Storm of Blossoms_ ever since it came out, so how about we go see that after school tomorrow, and you can buy the tickets."

"Okay," Chiyo agreed, and paused when she realized what she'd just agreed to. "Wait, like a date?"

"Mmm, not if you don't _want_ it to be," Usagi teased cheerfully, and trailed a single finger down her cheekbone. "But yeah, two people going to a movie, one of them buys, maybe they get dinner or go shopping afterwards…it's a date if you _want_ to call it one."

"I told you so," Naru chorused, seconds before the bell for class rang.

* * *

"Ugh, I'm starved," Usagi moaned to herself, hobbling down the sidewalk. "Dumb blonde is right, you think I'd remember why I don't share food," she grumbled. She paused for breath and slumped over, clutching her stomach. "Alright, I just need to get to the Crown and I can down a milkshake or something there." She pushed off the wall and hurried around the corner, only to crash into someone and stumble back.

"Usagi, how are you doing?" Motoki asked cheerfully. Usagi bit down on the biting comment she'd been about to launch at Mamoru. _I guess the exception proves the rule._

"I'm _starved,_ Motoki," she whined pitifully to her big-brother figure. Their mothers were best friends growing up, so they'd known each other a long time. "I skipped lunch and was looking forward to one of your shakes to take the edge off, but how am I going to get one if you're all the way over here instead of working?"

"Well," he laughed, "Unazuki is taking a shift, so you could always see how well her skills measure up."

"Moe," she pouted, "No one could _ever _measure up to you and your Specials. I guess I'll just quietly go home and waste away until dinner."

"Now, now, that can't be healthy. A growing girl like you needs plenty of fuel. _Especially_ one who needs to grow as much as you do."

"Hey," she yelped playfully. "I'm not short, I'm petite! And mom was a late bloomer too."

"Well then, I guess we need to make sure you get well fed with plenty of sun and water, so you can blossom into a beautiful flower. C'mon, I know I good all-you-can-eat place a block from here."

"You're the greatest!" she squeed. "Does Reika know how lucky she is to have you?" He chuckled.

"In this case, it's me who knows how lucky I am to have her," Motoki said, leading her away to the restaurant. "So why were you skipping lunch? You weren't trying to diet, were you? It's not healthy at your age, and your figure really doesn't need the help."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, you wonderful man," Usagi giggled. "No, it wasn't a diet. I let a classmate steal a little too much from my bento, because she was starving too, that's all. Why did you think I'd be dieting? I don't look fat, do I? _Do I?!_" She looked over her own body in mock horror.

"Usagi…" Motoki said with a long-suffering sigh. "Please don't, I get enough of that from Unazuki."

"Lies, she's got a better figure than I do," Usagi said with only a touch of jealousy.

"Tell _her_ that. First her boyfriend dumped her, and now she's trying to slim down and give herself a makeover for the Princess Cabaret."

"She got dumped? Really? And what's the Princess Cabaret?"

"Yes, her jerk of a boyfriend dumped her, and I still think she's better off without him. But she's convinced that she has to change everything about herself now, which is why she wanted to enter the Princess Cabaret. It's a contest held by one of the big pop-idols to scout out the next generation of 'Rising Talent'. But she wants to get herself a new wardrobe and a make-over for it, so she's working as many shifts as she can handle to pay for everything."

"Sounds cool," Usagi said thoughtfully. "Maybe me and Naru will give it a try. But I think she's going about it all wrong."

"Oh?"

"She wants to be a pop-star from the sound of it, right? Shouldn't she be practicing singing and dancing and stuff? Pop-stars have people to do their hair and make-up for them, but they can't have people sing their songs, so she needs to practice her act."

"I never thought about it like that. Do you think you could have a talk with her sometime this week?"

"Sure, I'll swing by the Crown this weekend if you tell me when her shifts are over. But you might wish I didn't if she ends up actually winning this thing."

"If that happens, I'll be happy for her. Imagine-my sister the pop star."

"Yes, your sweet, innocent sister dumped into the world of paparazzi, drugs, sex scandals, and burned-out has-beens."

"...Usagi, will you help me sabotage her attempts to make sure she _never_, under _any_ circumstances, has _any_ chance of winning the contest?"

"As long as she never finds out. If we get caught, I'm blaming you," Usagi promised.

* * *

"Well," Luna huffed, "not meeting me to look at the hospital is one thing, but it's another thing entirely for me to find one of the senshi making a pig out of herself on another man's credit. What were you thinking, dropping your duties like a hat to go gallivanting off with an older man?"

"I was _thinking_ that I was too hungry to think because I spent most of lunch following another lead about the Dark Kingdom," Usagi snapped. "So put a sock in it Luna. And Motoki has been a friend of the family's since before I was born—we're like cousins." She sighed. "Even if he's hot as hell. But he's taken anyways, so it doesn't matter, even if I had Naru's tastes for older men."

"…What lead were you following?" Luna asked.

"One of my classmates missed class yesterday, and then showed up to school ten or twenty pounds lighter than she was before. She was also starving and exhausted. Sound familiar?"

"That does sound like the symptoms of a slow energy drain," Luna said darkly. "But loss of weight is something new…Possibly they're speeding the body's metabolism to generate more energy, and draining it as it's being generated?"

"You'd know better than me. But apparently she lost the weight after trying out this new program at the gym. The Fitness Works gym, it was called."

"Isn't it normal for humans to lose weight after exercising?"

"Not this fast," Usagi told her. "I thought that the Dark Kingdom could probably steal loads of energy from people working out, and they'd never notice because they'd expect to be tired anyways."

"So you checked out the gym during lunch, and didn't eat?"

"No, I wrung her for information, and I gave her my bento because it looked like she was about to pass out from hunger. Next time I'll let other people be generous," she grumbled. "Did you find anything at the hospital?"

"Unfortunately, they have a strict 'no animals' policy that I couldn't maneuver around. But I did hear that there were another four victims today," Luna told her.

"Definitely not normal," Usagi contemplated. "Decision time, Luna. We don't have enough time to check out both the gym and the hospital today. Which do we go for? I'm leaning towards the gym."

"The gym? Why?" Luna asked. "I would think the hospital would be a more important target, given how many victims are there."

"Yes, but they aren't targeted at the hospital," Usagi argued. "They're ending up there after they're attacked and drained, but that's not where the draining is happening. If we go to the gym and stop them, then there might not be anyone else showing up at the hospital. If we go to the hospital instead, all we'll find out is that we should've gone to the gym, so let's skip the side-quest."

"Well, I suppose I can't argue with that logic," Luna conceded. One bus ride later and they stood outside the gym in question.

"Well, this place has been around a while, so it isn't like the House of Fortune. More like the Osa-P, where the youma impersonated someone. Anyone in particular I should watch out for, 'cause it would suck if all the trainers here were youma."

"It's very uncommon for the Dark Kingdom to put more than one youma on an operation at a time," Luna assured her. "Two or three at the most, which is almost unheard of. More likely there's one youma here that is brainwashing the other people into following their will."

"Any giveaways? Vacant eyes, drool, repeatedly saying 'braaaains'?"

"Slowed reactions, so it will commonly take a moment to react to a question you ask them," Luna told her. "Their reactions slow even further the more unexpected the development, and they often don't have the mental filter humans normally have before speaking, so unpredictability is your ally here. Just so long as you don't give away your identity, of course."

"Of course," Usagi agreed, and frowned as something caught her eye. Someone. "Oh, hell no," she growled, and stormed into the gym. "Naru!" she called with false cheerfulness, waving to the redhead. "What are you doing here?"

"Same as you, checking out Chiyo's weight-loss advice," Naru told her.

"Why would you want to lose weight? Your curves are in all the right places, unlike me. I barely have any curves," Usagi complained, looking down at her as yet undeveloped chest.

"Well…it's what you were saying about gaining muscle," Naru told her, and stepped in conspiratorially. "That thing that attacked the store still has me freaked. I was helpless against it—pinned to the wall by my neck when Sailor Moon showed up. If I get in better shape, then maybe I won't be so helpless."

Usagi sighed, unable to argue with that. "Fine, I guess we should spot each other then. What should we start with?"

"Did I just hear someone ask for work-out advice!" Usagi and Naru jumped and spun around to find themselves facing the source of the boisterously cheerful voice. While not a mountain of muscle, the personal trainer was at least a large hill of it. "I will be happy to help you with any exercise assistance you require!"

"Thank you so much," Naru gushed, happily ogling the hot guy despite his being almost a decade her senior. Or in her case, perhaps it was because he was almost a decade her senior.

"Which do you think is better, boxing or kendo?" Usagi asked spontaneously. Naru looked at her, confused, but she was too busy counting mentally.

_1…2…3…4…_

"I'm afraid we don't have kendo equipment here!" the trainer announced. "We do however offer boxing, kick boxing, and various martial arts lessons if you're interested!"

"Just wondering," Usagi told him with a cheerful smile. _Either he's a total idiot, or he's brainwashed. For the sake of the gene pool, I hope it's the latter._

"The best place to start is with stretches, and if you don't have proper equipment we have clean changes of exercise clothes we are happy to lend you at no extra cost!"

"Oh, thanks! What's the cost for the workout?" Naru asked.

"From stretching to relaxation chambers, the first day's workout is free!" he chorused mechanically. A few minutes later they had both changed into tank-tops and sweats, and he was running them through some basic stretches. Usagi, interestingly, had undone her trademark style and rewoven it into a single, large bun with a shorter ponytail trailing off of it.

"You changed your hair," Naru commented with mild surprise. "That bun looks sort of complicated, though. Any reason you lost the odangos?"

"I'm not sure I trust the lockers here," Usagi told Naru, "so I grabbed some stuff I didn't want to risk losing and tied it up in my hair. It's gotta be useful for _something_, after all." She leaned down to touch her toes and the knot flopped, but didn't become undone.

"You stuck your wallet in your hair?" Naru was a touch impressed by her friend's ingenuity, despite it also being somewhat paranoid. That, and it looked like it would be absolute hell to untangle when Usagi had to let her hair back down.

"No, but I emptied it out and stuck the money in my socks," she admitted, and gestured to the bulge at her ankles as they sat on floor to do butterflies. Naru nodded and let it drop as they continued, finishing with a sitting twist that made Usagi's spine pop in three places.

"That was a nice warm-up," Naru chirped as the trainer led them across the floor to the weights stand. Usagi hung back a second and whispered to her.

"Naru, don't you think you should get to know him better before you leave the bra out of your outfit?" The redhead flushed and tried to stammer a denial, but Usagi kept going. "I mean, I guess he's hot, but he's a bit thick. Not the type I'd want to father _my_ children, which must be what you're thinking of if you're moving this fast. And besides, he might be taken."

"I didn't see a ring," Naru snapped, blushing, and then covered her mouth at the slip. "It's not like that Usagi! I'm just more comfortable like this when I work out."

"Which is why you leave it off at school when there are guys our own age around," she deadpanned.

"D****it Bunny! I don't bug you about stepping into closets with half our classmates, so leave my preferences alone!" Naru scolded under her breath.

"It isn't _illegal_ for me to date half our classmates," Usagi countered. "Even if I do it at the same time. Morally wrong and slutty, maybe, but not illegal. And none of them are liable to pull a wham, bam, thank you ma'am on me!"

"He wouldn't do that!"

"Because you know the personal trainer you just met five minutes ago so well," the blonde argued quietly. "I just don't want you to get yourself in a bad situation!" Before Naru could argue back Usagi stepped forward and tapped the trainer on the elbow. "Hey, would you be willing to give my friend a wild ride tonight?"

"Usagi!" Naru tried to screech, but her throat had locked up, and her legs had turned to jelly. The trainer just stood there for several seconds, the same bland, cheerful smile never leaving his face.

_1…2…3…4…5…_

"I'm afraid I don't understand your question!" And then he went back to explain the weights and different exercises you could use them for. Usagi just raised an eyebrow at Naru, who wilted over.

"Okay, point taken." She turned and hurried back to the changing rooms and returned a minute later, with the telltale straps visible under her tank top. The trainer didn't even notice her disappearance.

_For the love of all that's holy, please let him be brainwashed, _Usagi thought to herself as they kept going. She noticed that, interestingly, Naru was losing energy (presumably literally, given the Dark Kingdom's involvement) faster than she was, and called a stop to the workout early.

"Well, the day won't be complete without a visit to our patented relaxation chambers!" he insisted, ushering them down into the basement.

"I feel pretty relaxed already," Usagi tried to demur, "I think I'll skip it."

"Nonsense! The chambers are an integral part of our workout program! Here at Fitness Works, we see to it that your hard work works with the help of our patented relaxation chambers, which speed your body's metabolism while massaging your muscles with pleasant vibrations—you'll swear that the excess weight is just drained off of you!"

Usagi snorted at the vibrations comment and then choked when he mentioned draining. _These guys have a sick sense of humor._

"You might not want them, but I'm sore," complained Naru. "Lead the way!"

"Fine, I'll come along," Usagi grumbled. _If only so I'm on hand to make sure nothing happens to you. You know, if Naru keeps getting targeted, secrecy be d***ed I'm telling her who I am so she'll take this stuff more seriously._

"Here we are!"

"I'll take over from here," said a quieter voice as a man stepped out from the shadows. Immediately the trainer about-faced and walked out of the room. "Welcome to our relaxation chambers, ladies," he said politely. Where the trainers had looked like body-builders—piles of muscle—this man looked more like a martial artist: lean, limber, and stronger than he appeared. "Follow me to an available chamber, please." He turned around, his ponytail swishing behind him, and Usagi called out.

"How do these things work?" she asked, looking around at the mechanical coffins spread out across the room. "These aren't tanning beds, are they? Because that's really not good for my skin."

"Not at all," he said with a laugh. Usagi saw that his nametag read Kyo. "You simply lie face up in one of the chambers and it vibrates the surface beneath you as part of a massage. The top part vibrates the air in the chamber to have a similar effect on your skin without being too intrusive."

_That makes absolutely no sense,_ Usagi thought to herself, but decided that drawing the youma's ire (since this guy pretty clearly wasn't brainwashed) by calling it out would be a bad idea. _This stuff didn't really hit Chiyo hard until the next day or two, so we'll go through it, and I'll come back later and wreck the place._

"Show me the way," she said bluntly. A few minutes later they both were in different pods. In the dark, Usagi wondered to herself how she was going to take out the youma. _Oh well, _she thought to herself, shifting to reach up to touch the pocket knife stuck in her hair bun_, I'll figure it out when I get there._

* * *

Kyokudo smiled, allowing a fang to momentarily appear through his disguise. He walked back to his desk in the corner to check how the models were functioning.

"Yes, relax, become tired and sleep as you give your energy to the Dark Kingdom," he crooned to himself. "With the imprinting these chambers do, we can keep draining you even after you've left us. Flail around and try to stay alive, little fish. The more you fight, the more we feed."

He noticed that three of the twelve chambers were reaching the end of the timespan it was safe for a human to be in them. General Jadeite had ordered no casualties if it was at all possible, to avoid drawing the suspicion of the authorities. It really was rather annoying.

The conflict in Africa and the Middle East left Kunzite with what was almost a free hand in attacking humans and ripping their life-force from their mangled bodies. Nephrite's methods only disappeared individual people, which happened often enough to be ignored in the Americas. And Zoicite simply wasn't good at collecting energy, which was why he'd spear-headed the search for the Silver Crystal to redeem himself.

But Jadeite's forces had the difficult task of collecting large amounts of energy with as few corpses as possible. Thus far they had succeeded admirably, and he was quickly rising above the others in Queen Beryl's favor. But that didn't make it any less annoying.

Kyokudo hit the End Session buttons for each of the victims and escorted them out. When he returned to the desktop, however, he frowned at the message he was being given.

_Module 6 isn't draining any energy, in spite of it having an occupant? How can that be?_ He double-checked the computer readings and then walked over and examined the chamber cautiously. _The chamber has been running less than ten minutes, and the occupant is still healthy, so it hasn't run out of energy to absorb. In fact, according to the readings it absorbed only the trace amounts of energy the human was leaking from its workout, and stopped. The whole point of the workout is to get their energy flowing so it's easy to drain? Did this one not work out before coming down here?_ He double-checked the readings again.

_No, there was a measurable amount of energy flowing from her in the beginning, so the human definitely used the facilities upstairs. Also, the trainers are programmed not to bring down anyone who didn't work out first. But once the drain started, the flow stopped._ The youma frowned, horns peeking out from his forehead before he got his disguise back under control.

_When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth. He must have some power stopping the drain from affecting him. Which means…he must have some contact with magic of his own._ He quirked his lips.

_Well, considering that he probably killed Balm, I'd like to buy him a drink. Sadly, I'm probably on our mysterious warrior's target list as well. I could kill him now, while he's helpless in the pod, but…_ Kyokudo eyed the other pods around the room. _General Jadeite said no witnesses, and this would leave too many. Should I just contact him with the information?_ Kyokudo considered the problem and gave into his ambition.

_I can do this without the general's help. I didn't feel any magic on anyone who's come in in the past day, so he probably just has that as a weak passive defense, and relies on an enchanted weapon to attack. I'll just wait for him to run out of time in the chamber and ambush him before he can leave the premises. General Jadeite will probably promote me to Morga's old position once I bring him her killer's head_.

_And…it will be nice to cut loose and leave some corpses for once. The other generals' troops get all the fun._

Kyokudo smiled and eyed the clock. Sixteen minutes in Chamber 6, and only fourteen more to go before he got a look at this mysterious warrior.

* * *

Usagi yawned slightly as the lid of the relaxation chamber swung away from her with a hiss. She swung her legs to the side, squinting in the light after being in the dark for half an hour, and stood up.

"Eh, that was an okay nap, I guess," she said carelessly. "What did you think, Naru?" The redhead was leaning against a wall, waiting for her, despite the dirty looks Kyo was shooting her.

"I think—" Naru began and trailed off with a large yawn. She looked dead on her feet to Usagi's eyes, despite the grin on her face. "I think it was wonderful, and I could go for another four hours or so." She yawned again. "I'm just going to hit the hay when I get home, and homework can go to hell for all I care."

"Well ladies," Kyo said, eying Usagi strangely, "I'll just wish you a good day, and remind you that we only advise use of our relaxation chambers every four to six days, so don't come back until then unless you want to risk your good health!" He smiled cheerfully at the thought, his eyes never leaving the blonde as she and Naru walked out the door. _I wouldn't have guessed it was a girl. Oh well, the plan will still continue._ He reached out and gave a mental nudge to the thralls under his command. Then he stepped out after the girls.

"Excuse me, Miss blonde!" he called up the steps. The two girls paused.

"What is it?" Usagi asked. _S***, he knows. He was eyeing me the entire time—he has to know. He's about to attack, and I need to kill him now before he gets anyone else caught up in the cross-fire, or worse, reports back on my identity._ Her left hand idly reached up to scratch her hair bun, and palmed one of the things there. A pocket knife.

"I've noticed a slight defect in the chamber you were using, and I'd like you to take a moment and sign a document saying that it wasn't your fault." Usagi blinked and played along.

"That it _wasn't_ my fault? Wouldn't you want to blame me for this?"

"No you're a minor, so it's just a formality. Also, our warranty only covers usual wear and tear, not vandalism, so even if you did do it I'd say that you didn't, so that the company would repair it for free." He smiled in an attempt to be charming.

"Okay. You go on ahead, Naru. This should only take a minute." _And I don't want you anywhere near the fighting this time._

"Alright, meet you outside," Naru said, and walked off. Usagi trampled back down the steps and followed Kyo into a side room—his office.

"So where's the paper?" she asked, palming the knife and tensing.

"Oh, this isn't about a paper at—" Kyo began, only for her to dart forward, slash at his ribs, and dart back again. _Green blood,_ she noticed. He definitely wasn't human. Good.

"You little b****!" he shrieked, and dropped his disguise, revealing his true form to be similar to that of a lizard-man.

"Moon Power: Make-Up!" she yelled, grabbing the brooch she had snuck into the center of her knotted hair. Instantly she felt power enshroud her, eating away at her exercise clothes and weaving new ones from pure magic. The door opened behind her just as the glow of her transformation faded and in stumbled two—no, three of the brainwashed trainers.

Sailor Moon slid backwards, dodging a lash of the youma's tail, and buried her elbow in one trainer's gut. The man bent double as her senshi strength broke through even his brainwashing to elicit a huff of pain, and she backhanded his face, knocking him into the wall. He slumped to the ground silently. The other two clutched at her and she jabbed their ribs as hard as she could, feeling something break.

"Die!" screamed the youma as it darted forwards, claws outstretched. Moon spun under its arms and kicked it in the back, cratering the wall where it hit.

"Moon Tiara Magic!" The disk missed as the youma ripped its head from the wall.

"I am Kyokudo, and I will kill you for the glor—" it threatened, only to jerk backwards as Usagi shot forward, drilling a fist towards its face. The punch missed, but tiara on its return trip did not, biting into the lizard's skull. It dispersed into dust.

Usagi immediately moved backwards as the trainers' headbands fizzled. One of them groaned and wheezed in pain, clutching at his ribs. After a few seconds it was pretty clear that he wasn't going to reveal himself to be another youma and attack her. She walked over and nudged him with her foot.

"Hey, you alive?" He groaned and turned to face her.

"Who are…you?" he wheezed. "What happened?"

"My name isn't important, you can just know that I'm the one who saved your lives from that youma."

"A what…?"

"The thing that got blasted into the big pile of dust over there," she told him, pointing with her thumb to the lizard man's remains. She bent down and frisked the other two unconscious trainers, producing a cell phone. "Here, call the police and an ambulance." She paused. "And I'd take it as a favor if you didn't mention my involvement. You know, since I saved your life and all."

She dropped the cell phone and walked into the empty hallway. Scanning it for cameras, she changed back into her civilian guise and went to meet Naru and collect her stuff.

* * *

"So, I smashed the operation at the gym," she summarized to Luna while training in the park that night. "Tomorrow we'll find out if that put a stop to the sleeping sickness. They should all regain their energy with the youma gone, right?"

"Maybe not all of them, or all of their energy, but they should regain their energy if the connection hasn't been severed."

"Connection?" Sailor Moon asked, standing up and shaking out her arms after several sets of push-ups. "You mean the spell used to drain their energy?" She began jogging lightly, and Luna followed.

"Yes. Think of it like a pump and a pipe," Luna explained, knowing that Usagi wanted to know about these things. "The pipe allows energy to flow between two places. The Dark Kingdom inserts this 'pipe' into the 'tank' of human energy and uses a 'pump' on the other end to suck it empty to fill up their own 'tank'. However, the energy wants to stay where it is, so it's the equivalent of making water flow uphill. If you destroy the pump, the water—the energy—will return to where it came from on its own."

"The Dark Kingdom doesn't have any way of stopping it from returning?"

"They could sever the connection between the two, effectively blocking or removing the 'pipe' but that also means that they couldn't drain anymore energy from this victim." Usagi slowed down, frowning.

"Luna, how long would it take for this energy to return to the victims? A few hours? Days?"

"Not at all! As long as the connection is intact it should only take a few minutes for it to return. Water flows downhill much faster than up."

"Then why was Naru still exhausted for several hours after being drained?" Usagi asked. "Shouldn't she have gotten her energy back?"

"I…don't know. The connection wouldn't have atrophied on its own until after the energy had returned, and it doesn't sound as though the Dark Kingdom was severing the connection on their own," Luna admitted. "The energy should have returned on its own when you destroyed the draining devices." Usagi tripped mid-jog and ate dirt.

"The draining pods! D***it Luna! I thought I only had to destroy the youma!" She jumped back to her feet and face-palmed. "I should have realized that, it's so _obvious_ in hind-sight," she grumbled to herself. "I'm an idiot! No, worse, I'm going _genre blind_!"

"Usagi! You're saying you didn't destroy the draining devices?"

"No!" Usagi began running towards the gym, despite it being a dozen blocks away, and Luna followed. "The other two times I only needed to destroy the youma! How was I to know this time was different?"

"I would have thought you'd have done it anyways, just to be thorough," Luna told her.

"There were still people in them! I didn't want too many witnesses," Usagi snapped. Then she stumbled as a thought hit her. "Crud, there were still people in there, and the youma wasn't there to get everyone out and oversee stuff." She grabbed Luna and took to the rooftops, chafing at their pace in the streets.

"I think they should be okay. I stayed around after you and that girl left, and the police evacuated everyone fairly quickly," Luna told her. The moved through the city in silence for a few minutes more and then touched down in front of the Fitness Works gym, which had Crime Scene—Do Not Cross tape around the front door.

"Can you scout ahead and see if anyone is there, Luna?"

"I have a better idea," the cat said. Luna flipped into the air, and at the apex of her jump produced a silver domino mask (the same one that manga!Usagi starts with for the first few battles) that Usagi snatched. "This is equipped with some minor scanning spells, which should let you scry the building." Usagi put the mask on and then stared at Luna unblinkingly.

…

"What is it?" Luna asked the blonde. "Why are you staring at me?"

"Luna, if you had this the entire time, why are you only now giving it to me?" Usagi asked coldly.

"You never needed it before," Luna answered defensively.

"Bull, Luna. I'm fighting a war against life-sucking monsters. I need every advantage I can get," she snapped. "I could have _found_ a use for it before, like checking out the House of Fortune without going inside, or seeing that they were draining people in the basement of the gym."

"I'm not just training you to fight the Dark Kingdom, but to be a senshi," Luna told her. "Giving you too many shortcuts before you can use your own power well is counter-productive to that."

"And not giving them to me could get me or someone else killed!"

"You've survived well thus far," Luna retorted.

"All's not well just because it ends well," Usagi countered, and then stopped herself from kicking the black cat. _Crossing her would probably count as bad luck,_ Usagi thought to herself. _And besides, 'I will resist the urge to dropkick the obscenely cute and fuzzy whatsit which follows my party around. There's no telling what powers it has.' Or what cool toys it can give me._ "Do you have anything _else _that I might find useful? Like a weapon I can use on the youma?"

"No," Luna told her, "nothing safe for you to use. Most of my equipment is the transformation objects for the other senshi, as well as communicators. I also have something for the senshi of Mercury to use, as well as an item that will help us find the princess and the Silver Crystal, but neither of them are useful in this situation."

"You sure?" Usagi asked drily, taking the mask off and raising an eyebrow.

"Prove to me that you can handle yourself without external help," Luna told her, "and I'll give you more tools to make things easier. But you—_you especially _—should realize what a bad idea it is to use something as a crutch." Usagi sighed.

"You have point there," she grumbled. "If I start relying on it it'll just get broke at the worst possible time." She rubbed her brooch self-consciously, still not comfortable with the target it represented.

"If that's enough, we should hurry up and destroy these draining devices," Luna told her.

"Alright." Usagi turned to enter the gym, and found herself staring into a security guard's flashlight.

"Whoever you are, stop right there," he said stiffly. "This is a crime scene, and private property. No trespassing is allowed." Usagi opened her mouth to explain, realized how unproductive that would actually be, and closed it again.

"Okay, sorry for loitering," she said cheerfully. "I was just curious about what happened. Uh…could you tell me the way to the park? I live nearby and got turned around in the dark."

He eyeballed her, but nodded. "Just keep going that direction for about ten blocks. But…are you sure it's safe for you to be out alone after dark? This is a good part of town, but still… would you like to come in and I can call your parents to pick you up?" Usagi weighed the possibility of the invitation in, and decided he'd be watching too closely for her to slip away.

"They won't be home for another hour, so no go, but thanks. It's fine, I've got some tricks if anyone bothers me, and I can scream _really_ loudly," she assured him airily, and flounced off in the direction he'd indicated. A block later she stopped, picked up Luna, and jumped onto a nearby roof.

"Why didn't you take his invitation?" Luna asked. "It seems like the perfect opportunity to get inside the building."

"Yes, but he would have been watching me too closely to slip away and break stuff," Usagi rationalized. "Also, I would have had to give him a number he could call: either give him a fake number which would make him suspicious, or my parents' number which would have them wondering why I'm over here instead of in bed like they think."

"Oh…yes, you have a good point."

"Granted," Usagi continued, "I could have just beat him up with brute force, but I'd rather have a reputation for saving lives and stopping monsters, instead of one for breaking, entering, assaulting, and battering. The last thing I need is people thinking the youma are the good guys, so I need whatever little good publicity I can get."

"Yes…" Luna agreed uncertainly. "Well, what do you plan to do now?"

"Well first, I'm going to go back to the gym via the rooftops, and stay out of sight." She picked up Luna and began suiting word to deed. "Then I'm going to use this really cool and useful mask to spy on him and learn where he's patrolling, and then I'll sneak past him and wreck the stuff."

"It's…as good a plan as any," Luna told her.

After a few minutes of observation Usagi had figured out that he mostly stayed in the office on the ground floor with the door open, and only stepped out occasionally, to do a light patrol.

"Great," she grumbled, "As long as he keeps the door open he can see almost the entire floor without leaving the room. I don't suppose I can teleport, Luna? You'd have mentioned it by now, I think."

"Teleportation is rather high-level magic. Even if you can learn, it won't be for a year or two," Luna told her. Usagi sighed.

"I thought so. Well, I guess we need a distraction."

"What do you have in mind?" Luna asked, feeling uneasy about the blonde's smile.

A few minutes later, Usagi's shrill scream cut through the night.

"Eeeeek! Somebody! Help! Please, somebody! Help! Rape!" The security guard was rushing outside before she finished the first "somebody," nightstick at the ready. He raced further down the street in the direction of the screams, hearing a second, older woman begin yelling as well.

A few seconds after he'd crossed the street, Usagi dropped down from the roof and cautiously slipped inside the building. Luna would keep him occupied for the few minutes she needed to destroy the equipment, and her mask would (hopefully) warn her if he returned early.

"This way…down the stairs," she remembered, scampering down the hall and stairwell. Sure enough, the orange pods were sitting where they'd been before. _Lucky the police didn't impound any as evidence._

Not wasting any time, Sailor Moon simply drew back an arm and punched the machine as hard as she could. Her fist broke the metal and plastic easily, plunging her arm into it up to the elbow. There was a whine, a spray of electrical sparks, and with a crackle a plume of life-energy shot into the air and dispersed, hopefully back to its owners.

Usagi kicked the device to be thorough, breaking it completely in half, and moved onto the next machine. Three kicks completely crushed it, releasing the captive energy, and she was about to destroy the third when a picture clicked on over her left eye.

She didn't pause, immediately throwing herself to the side while tossing a "Moon Tiara Magic!" blind over her shoulder. A blast of dark energy destroyed the machine, releasing another spray of life energy, prompting the new figure to swear. She rolled, twisted to face him, and immediately jumped onto another pod and caught her tiara, which had missed completely.

"Well, I was going to wait another hour or two before I collected the energy we stored," the blonde in a military uniform said, power crackling around him, "but when we started losing chunks of our store I thought I'd see who the rat is. You don't look like Sailor V."

Usagi took a deep breath and focused her thoughts, eyeing the energy he had called up. "Foul villain of the Dark Kingdom, my na-Moon Tiara Magic!" He flinched at the sudden assault and her tiara bounced off his force field, but she threw one of the modules at him as well.

Instead of crashing into his shield, it froze in the air in front of him and floated as she picked up her tiara, assuming another ready stance.

"Please, senshi wanna-be," he drawled, tapping a few buttons on the machine. "I am General Jadeite of the Four Heavenly Kings, and I'm dimensions beyond any mere youma." The lights on the pod flickered, and a stream of energy poured out. It didn't disperse into the air, however, instead flowing into a crystal in Jadeite's hand. Then he flicked his wrist.

The now empty pod flew at Sailor Moon with no warning, and it still nicked her when she dodged, sending her tumbling behind another pod.

"Moon Tiara Magic!" Jadeite frowned when he didn't see the tiara appear, but his eyes barely widened when she threw the machine she was hiding behind at him.

"Thanks," he deadpanned, catching it harmlessly in his telekinesis again and reaching out to draw the energy from it. He frowned as he saw Sailor Moon kick in another machine with a crunch, sending a plume of life energy into the air. This time, he didn't let her throw it, blasting it and her into the walls when she picked it up. His telekinesis may not work on living things, but everything else was fair game.

Then he frowned when he saw that she wasn't wearing her tiara. Hadn't she thrown her stupid spell earlier? His eyes were drawn to an odd gash in the floor, and he stepped to the side just in time.

Her tiara burst back up from the floor beneath his feet, opening a deep gash along his left leg, and carved through the now-drained pod he had been levitating as it homed back in on Sailor Moon.

Sailor Moon, who had pulled herself out of the rubble and was flying through the air at him with a fist pulled back. It flashed against his force field, and he swatted her out of the air with the damaged machine. She hit the wall hard, and he was charging up a blast to take her out before she got back up when it hit him.

A rose slashed across his arm, embedding itself in his wrist, and he gasped in pain. Simultaneously, roses embedded themselves in the other relaxation pods, prompting them all to spout off their stored energy.

"Do not fear Sailor Moon," Tuxedo Kamen declared from the doorway. "No matter how many times you fall, there shall always be those to offer a helping hand in your fight against the dark."

"Sailor _Moon_? F*** this, I'm cutting my losses," Jadeite snarled as his injured leg buckled, and disappeared. Sailor Moon, blinked and hauled herself out of the wreckage with a sigh. _Well, he actually helped out there, so I guess he's not completely useless. And unless they're playing a very long con, he's not on the Dark Kingdom's side either. Still, that doesn't mean he's on mine…_

She glanced around, double-checking that all the machines had been destroyed, and a picture flicked on in her mask. The security guard was heading back to the gym, but still two blocks away. She cracked her neck and ran out of the gym, not willing to put up with anything else tonight.

* * *

"How did it go?" Luna asked once they both settled in her room.

"Mostly a success," Usagi answered blithely. "Does the name Jadeite ring a bell?"

"Vaguely, but nothing definite," Luna told her. "Did you run into a youma by that name?"

"I think so. He called himself General Jadeite of the Four Heavenly Kings, so I think he's got some authority." She yawned. "He wore a gray uniform and looked like a blond human male, except that he bled green like a youma."

"In my experience with the Dark Kingdom, those with higher ranks are more powerful," Luna said. "I'm impressed that you managed to make him bleed."

"I don't think I could do it twice. He was more preoccupied with gathering the stored energy than killing me, or I'd have been in trouble. When he got serious after I cut him, he swatted me like a fly."

"Oh?" Luna asked.

"He was going to blast me pretty hard when Tux-boy showed up. I'm not sure what it would have done, since getting pounded into the wall by a flying relaxation pod didn't do much more than sting, but it would have at least hurt, and I bet he could have kept blasting me."

"I'm not sure I trust this man," Luna said archly.

"Even if he's not on our side, he's the enemy of my enemy," Usagi countered. "I don't have to like him or trust him, provided we can cooperate against the Dark Kingdom. And if he wants to save my bacon when I need it, I'm not really going to complain too much, no matter how cheesy and over-dramatic he may be."

"Still…be careful," Luna warned.

"Oh, I will. But now I believe you were going to tell me about the other equipment you're holding onto."

"Now why would I do that?" Luna asked.

"Because you told me that if I handled this well you give me other tools to help me survive."

"I told you that once you proved yourself capable of acting only with your own power, I would give you tools to make things easier. You have not yet proven yourself."

"I destroyed the modules!"

"Only some of them. Some were handled by that man, and you told me that Jadeite gained the energy from at least two of them. Jadeite, whom you admit had all but defeated you were it not for that man's _outside help._"

"They're still destroyed, and I was facing a General! The guys you just said are the Dark Kingdom's strongest! I survived, and I made him bleed!"

"Which is impressive, but not enough," Luna told her. "What few things I do have that you could use are not toys, and should be used to supplement or boost your abilities. Not to replace them."

"I'm not going to rely on them, but I need every advantage I can get!"

"Then prove it by making good use of the advantages you already have instead of seeking new ones."

"This could be the difference between life and death Luna! What if I die?"

"There is nothing I could give you right now that would do more than slightly prolong your life," Luna told her. "What's more, the enemy would figure out what you were using, and once they overcame it and killed you it would be impossible for any other senshi to use the same advantages, crippling our entire side. Get to Prism-class, and then we'll talk."

"If it could prolong my life, it could prolong it long enough to get to Prism-class," Usagi argued. Luna didn't even bother to respond, just twitching her ears. Instead, Usagi sighed and changed tactics. "…Luna, what exactly were you in your past life?"

"What was I? I was a mau, just as I am now."

"Not that, your position. Your job. Were you a warrior?"

"A warrior? Not as such. I was primarily an advisor and teacher of warriors."

"So don't you think you should listen to the person who had actual _combat experience_ in their past life?" Usagi asked archly.

"I think I should listen to the orders Queen Serenity gave me before she died, which were to find the senshi and see that they fought and could fight the Dark Kingdom and all other threats in this life." Usagi sighed again.

"So all I can do is get to Prism-class, huh?"

"If I see a situation where a tool I have would be useful, I will let you use it," Luna assured her, "but I believe you greatly overestimate my arsenal. Even the communicators I have, for instance, were made mostly from a base model of the one I had with me and other scraps I assembled."

"…You can _make_ stuff I could use, then? Because I can think of one or two things you could make that might be helpful," Usagi said eagerly.

"You probably overestimate my skills, but get to Prism-class and we'll talk," Luna told her.

"Seriously, Luna? I destroyed the pods and fought off a General!"

"You were involved, but you were not the only one involved."

"It still got done, didn't it?"

"All's not well just because it ends well," Luna countered. There was a long pause and then Usagi blew out an exasperated breath.

"Defeated by my own argument," she grumbled. "You know what Luna, I think we've gotten off on the wrong foot. You think I'm too demanding, and I think you're too passive, right?"

"I wouldn't call myself passive, but yes, you are rather demanding."

"That's because I pretty much got _press-ganged_ into a _war_. But _anyways,"_ Usagi continued before Luna could open her mouth to either respond or apologize, "my point is that we got off on the wrong foot. I want to make a deal and bury the hatchet."

"A deal? Go on," Luna said.

"I'll stop complaining about wanting help until I get to Prism-class, but once I do I want you to treat my points with the seriousness they deserve. Because this isn't just about me, Luna. If I fail—for any reason, be it your fault or mine—a lot of innocent people are going to _die._ You don't want that to happen, do you? I don't want to take any chances, so I want to stack the odds in my favor as much as possible. It isn't just my life at stake. It's the world."

"Yes, but if you stack the odds in your favor and still lose, then you've stacked the odds heavily against the other senshi as well," Luna explained. "I have to think not just about you, or the people you protect, but the other senshi and the people they will protect as well."

"…Yeah, I can sort of see that. So here's my deal. I won't complain about this stuff until after I ascend to Prism-class on my own power, and I'll even give the mask back if you want, but once I've ascended I want you to treat my suggestions and requests with respect. You don't have to follow them, but you have to have good, logical reasons why you don't."

"Prism-class and one upgrade to your attack repertoire, but you can keep the mask," Luna offered.

"Deal." And they shook on it.

* * *

"You look like s***," Flau commented when Jadeite limped into the Radio Station. He shot her a dirty look, but the presence of the other workers kept her from any other punishment.

"Yeah, Mr. J Daito! What happened to your hand?" one of the plebs asked.

"Just…a rose thorn drew a little blood," he said stiffly. "I thought the flower shops were supposed to remove those, but I guess someone didn't get the hint."

"Tell me about it. I'm allergic, so I have to send back any flowers my adoring fans send."

"You don't have any adoring fans," someone else teased. They all broke into laughter as Jadeite and Flau stepped into the next room.

"Don't forget, you're on in five," someone called. Jadeite waved in acknowledgment before shutting the door.

"I take it all did not go according to plan, general?" Flau asked quietly.

"You're walking a fine line, Flau," warned Jadeite. "I'll remember your insubordination when the mission is through, you realize."

"I hope to redeem myself by killing our little pest, before that."

"Well, you might be interested to know that our little pest is indeed a senshi."

"I get a shot at Sailor V?" Flau asked eagerly, her disguise flickering for a moment. Jadeite laughed.

"You certainly are brave. Brave, or stupid, Flau. Most youma treat the minx like the boogie man, and you're so eager to test your luck." Before the youma could respond he waved a hand to interrupt. "No, it's not Sailor V. It's a new girl called Sailor Moon."

"Anything I should know, General?" Jadeite considered sending Flau in blind, or with misinformation, but decided that the mission was more important than petty revenge.

"Very fast and relatively strong, and mostly a physical fighter. Has only one spell that I saw, where she throws a glowing Frisbee." Flau choked up.

"A F-Frisbee? Even V had things like a boomerang, at least," she laughed.

"It could still probably kill you if it hits, and she can throw it past you and call it back so it hits you from behind," he warned.

"I'm not worried by that weakling," Flau chuckled, only to hiss in pain as Jadeite touched a glowing finger to her neck. She recoiled, the burn quickly fading.

"You should be," he warned, "she's killed several youma already. Also, she has another bozo in a suit hanging around. Granted, the guy throws roses, but they hurt like a b****." He rubbed his injured hand. "Not only that, but her stupid Frisbee almost took my leg off."

"The wound doesn't look too bad boss, why don't you just regenerate it?" Flau asked skeptically.

"I'm not a youma, you twit. I don't have regeneration unless I steal energy for it, and our magic isn't good at healing. Exhibit A: Queen Beryl herself."

"Oh, right," Flau muttered, realizing how close she was to genuinely getting blasted from the tone of his voice. "Well, uh, I believe we're on, sir." They entered the room.

"Ladies and gentlemen, and most especially all you lovely ladies, welcome to another night of Midnight Zero. I hope all of last night's lucky ladies are enjoying their prizes. If your boys are worth anything they'll have mentioned how beautiful you look, I don't doubt.

"And now here's the first of our four winners for tonight," Jadite continued. "This one is from Miss Sewing-sensei. 'I'm writing this in the hopes that my long-term boyfriend will finally take the hint. We've been seeing each other for three years now, and I'm ready to take the next step. My job doesn't pay the best, but I'm off in the summer so that's the perfect time for us to have the ceremony and honeymoon. I can even make my own dress! But no matter how much I've been hinting I haven't even gotten a glimpse of a plan for a ring! All I want is for him to sweep me off my feet and take me away into the sunset.'" Jade paused and chuckled charismatically.

"Well, Sewing-sensei, I hope your boyfriend is listening and takes the hint. If not, screaming and throwing things at my head always worked to get my old girlfriend's point across." The laugh track came on as the other men in the studio cracked up. "I hope you enjoy your gift. Ah, here's our next letter. This one is from Todai Tester.

"'Dear Midnight Zero, I'm in a bit of a bind. I'm a high-school student hoping to get into Todai [that's slang for Tokyo University] and to that end I've been attending cram school and seeing a tutor. The thing is, I've ended up falling for my tutor! He's so much older than me that I fear he'll never see me as a woman, just as a child and a student! He's a grown man who works at Todai, with a daughter of his own, but he's not married. How can hope to make him take me seriously and get my happily ever after?' Well, Miss Todai, you've already taken the first step. Admitting that you have an attraction is one of the hardest things at the beginning of any relationship. Tell him what you told me, and the worst that can happen is that you have to try again after you grow up a little. If he's the one, he's worth waiting for. Enjoy your prize.

" Our third letter for this episode comes from—well, we aren't supposed to use names, so I'll assume that Mariko is a pseudonym and hope for the best. 'Dear J Daito.' Oh that's nice, so few of our writers remember my name. 'My relationship problems are a bit scandalous, to tell the truth. I'm in love with a classmate and close friend who may or may not return my feelings. The thing is, she's a she. I don't think she likes girls, since she's been to mixers and had a relationship over the summer, but I can't live with this secret much longer! How do I try for a relationship without risking our friendship?' A tricky situation indeed, Miss Mariko. Does your friend know you like girls? If not, I'd suggest you break that to her first, possibly by trying to date another girl outside your usual social circle. If that doesn't repulse her, then you still have a chance. Best of luck.

"Our last letter comes from Ms. December Twenty-fourth. Ah, worried about becoming a Christmas cake, I see. She writes, 'Dear Midnight Zero. I'm not writing you for advice about my boyfriend, because I don't have a boyfriend in the first place. I'm young, single, and I have my own steady income. In spite of this, and my patronage of three different dating sites, I still can't find a good man! It's so bad, even my students are starting to spread rumors, and my coworkers are probably next. Is true love so hard to find?' Ms. December, the best advice I can give you is this. Ask your friends to set you up with someone they know and trust, instead of a blind date with a stranger. Maybe you'll find a spark.

"Well, that's it for tonight's Midnight Zero, everyone. Also, we'd like to alert all our viewers to a completion known as the Princess Cabaret coming up next week. Sponsored by Mikan Shiratori, it's a talent hunt for the next generation of idols. You could be the big winner. Tune in tomorrow for more love, all you ladies."

Usagi flicked off her radio. "That's it for me, goodnight Luna."

"I will never understand what you see in that. Sleep well, Usagi."

_I wonder if I know anyone who's written to Midnight Zero…Didn't Ms. Haruna wail something about becoming a Christmas cake when Umino flipped her skirt? I should ask her tomorrow—I bet her face will be amazing! Hey, maybe I should give it a try and get a prize—I could probably fake something pretty convincing and be one of the lucky four…four!_

Her eyes snapped open. "Luna, I've got an idea about the sleeping sickness."

* * *

Things are moving. Jadeite's building up several plans at once, so he's going to get some energy no matter what. I also left a lot of foreshadowing in this chapter, so revisit this one once I get around to posting more chapters.


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